Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS) | Division of Public Health

If you're pregnant and have rubella, you can pass it to your baby.

Rubella infection in pregnant women can cause severe birth defects in the baby. The conditions that result from a mother being infected with rubella during pregnancy are together known as congenital rubella syndrome, or CRS.

The MMR Vaccine

Congenital rubella syndrome is a vaccine-preventable disease. The MMR vaccine protects you and any future children.

Who is at risk?

CRS affects developing babies. A mother infected during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy (first trimester) has the highest risk of having a baby with CRS.

Conditions of congenital rubella syndrome

Many different conditions can affect developing babies if the mother is infected with rubella virus, including:

Deafness
Vision problems
Heart problems
Low birth weight
Organ damage
Intellectual disabilities
Miscarriage

Prevention

Rubella can be prevented with the MMR vaccine.
Check with your doctor to make sure you are vaccinated before you get pregnant.
You should not get the MMR vaccine if you are pregnant because the vaccine contains weakened live virus.

More information: Pregnancy and Rubella (CDC)