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NEW THIS SUNDAY: PERTUSSIS TRENDS IN THE UNITED STATES

Saturday, 13th of July 2013

• PERTUSSIS TRENDS IN THE UNITED STATES

Excerpt from the CDC Pinkbook chapter on pertussis, http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbook/pert.html

Following introduction of whole-cell pertussis vaccine in the 1940s, pertussis incidence gradually declined, reaching 15,000 reported cases in 1960 (approximately 8 per 100,000 population). By 1970, annual incidence was fewer than 5,000 cases per year, and during 1980-1990, an average of 2,900 cases per year were reported (approximately 1 per 100,000 population).

Pertussis incidence has been gradually increasing since the early 1980s. A total of 25,827 cases was reported in 2004, the largest since 1959. The reasons for the increase are not clear. A total of 27,550 pertussis cases and 27 pertussis related deaths were reported in 2010.

During 2001-2003, the highest average annual pertussis incidence was among infants younger than 1 year of age (55.2 cases per 100,000 population), and particularly among children younger than 6 months of age (982 per 100,000 population). In 2002, 24 percent of all reported cases were in this age group. However, in recent years, adolescents (11-18 years of age) and adults (19 years and older) have accounted for an increasing proportion of cases. During 2001-2003, the annual incidence of pertussis among persons aged 10-19 years increased from5.5 per 100,000 in 2001, to 6.7 in 2002, and 10.9 in 2003. In 2004 and 2005, approximately 60 percent of reported cases were among persons 11 years of age and older. Increased recognition and diagnosis of pertussis in older age groups probably contributed to this increase of reported cases among adolescents and adults.