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Pertussis vaccination in pregnancy: how many pediatric hospitalizations could be prevented?
Alessio Mesini1, Andrea Moscatelli2, Elio Castagnola2
1IRCCS Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy - alessio.mesini@gmail.com.
Insights
Maternal pertussis vaccination is crucial for protecting infants. Vaccination during pregnancy significantly reduces severe Bordetella pertussis infections and hospitalizations in young children, especially neonates.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Infectious Diseases
- Immunology
Background:
- Pertussis (whooping cough) poses a severe threat to infants, particularly neonates.
- Vaccination during pregnancy is a key strategy for preventing severe pertussis in newborns.
- A case of severe RSV and Bordetella pertussis infection requiring ECMO highlighted the need for further review.
Abstract:
Pertussis is a severe disease in children, especially in neonates and it is preventable by vaccination during pregnancy. After the observation of a 2-month-old toddler who needed extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for severe RSV plus Bordetella pertussis infection, we performed a review of all cases of pertussis admitted at the Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy, from 2012 to 2018. We retrieved 72 cases of admission for pertussis, 46% aging less than 3 months, 42% with at least one comorbidity. Two patients needed ICU admission. Pertussis vaccination during pregnancy could contribute to reduce this burden of hospitalizations in youngest subjects.
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