LAUSR

Why is vaccination against pertussis (whooping cough) important during pregnancy? In 2012, more than 48,000 cases of pertussis were reported in the United States. For people who have not been vaccinated, pertussis is highly contagious. Pertussis is easily spread through the air when infected people cough. Approximately 90% of those who are not immune to pertussis can become infected. Pertussis in adults can cause significant illness such as a severe chronic cough lasting up to 3 months, but in newborns it can be lifethreatening. Recent studies have shown that almost 1% of infants who need to be hospitalized die from pertussis, usually due to pneumonia and seizures. The majority of pertussis cases in the United States, specifically hospitalizations and deaths related to this infection, occur in infants younger than 3 months of age. Babies cannot be vaccinated until they are 2 months old, so a newborn is at risk of getting infected until he or she can receive a vaccine. Vaccinating women in pregnancy may reduce the likelihood that their babies will be exposed to pertussis.