Effectiveness of pertussis vaccination in pregnancy to prevent hospitalisation in infants aged <2 months and effectiveness of both primary vaccination and mother's vaccination in pregnancy in infants aged 2-11 months

Effectiveness of one and two doses of acellular pertussis vaccines against laboratory-confirmed pertussis requiring hospitalisation in infants: Results of the PERTINENT sentinel surveillance system in six EU/EEA countries, December 2015 – December 2019

“…Nevertheless, in the context of the PERTINENT study, we presented in 2022, in an analysis restricted to the five sites recommending vaccination in pregnancy, our results on the effect of both vaccination in pregnancy and primary vaccination in infants aged 2–11 months. We found a similarly good VE of at least one dose of PV, irrespective of maternal vaccination (estimated at around 74–95 % when mothers were vaccinated in pregnancy and 68–94 % with unvaccinated mothers) [21] . Sample size limitations prevented us to conclude on a potential interaction between the two vaccinations.…”

“…To further enhance protection for this vulnerable population, the consideration of pertussis vaccination during pregnancy is essential to protect younger infants aged <2 months who are not yet eligible to receive the first dose of aP vaccine. This vaccination strategy was also observed as protective in the context of the PERTINENT study [21] . Addressing this immunisation gap is of utmost importance for this age group with the highest risk of severe complications and mortality.…”

Pertussis epidemic in Denmark, August 2023 to February 2024

“…One prematurely born infant died, underlining the severity of pertussis in the youngest age group. The multi-country European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)-funded PERTINENT (Pertussis in Infants Network) study found that vaccination of women during pregnancy reduced hospitalisation in infants < 2 months of age by 75–88% [ 9 ]. In addition to a lower incidence among infants in Denmark during the 2023 epidemic, both the number and the proportion of infants admitted to the hospital was lower in 2023 compared with 2019 and 2016.…”

Evaluation of the Completeness and Timeliness of the Infant Pertussis Surveillance System in the Czech Republic in 2015, 2017 and 2019

“…It is thus necessary to promote additional immunisation strategies besides one booster dose in adolescents, including vaccination during pregnancy ( 1 , 15 , 16 ). In our study we noticed that infants with pertussis were under-vaccinated compared to the vaccination schedule.…”