BETHESDA, Md., Oct. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) supports new recommendations by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) that adults should be protected against whooping cough. The recommendations call for the tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis (Tdap) booster to be routinely given to adults instead of the previously recommended tetanus-diphtheria (Td) booster, with special attention to adults in contact with infants who are not fully vaccinated.
Adults, as well as adolescents, become vulnerable to whooping cough (pertussis) as childhood immunizations wear off, leaving people in these age groups at risk to acquire and transmit the disease. Cases of whooping cough in adults increased 150 percent between 2004 and 2003; more than 7,000 cases were reported in adults in 2004 (1,2).
Whooping cough, caused by bacteria found in the mouth, nose and throat, spreads from an infected person through close contact. Adults may experience symptoms such as prolonged coughing, which is sometimes so severe that it causes vomiting. The illness, which may take months to resolve, causes adults to have fitful sleep and miss work days. Adults with severe cases may develop pneumonia and need hospitalization. In addition, adults may spread whooping cough to others, particularly infants who have not yet received their vaccinations.
While the severity of whooping cough symptoms varies in adults, it is a life-threatening illness for infants who are not fully immunized. Ninety percent of all whooping cough-related deaths occur in infants younger than six months of age (3). A recent CDC study found that when the source of whooping cough could be identified, more than half of infant cases originated with an adult. Of these cases, parents and grandparents accounted for 55 percent of transmissions (4).
“Waning immunity puts adults at risk for getting and giving whooping cough. It’s the only vaccine-preventable disease on the rise in the U.S.,” says Susan J. Rehm, MD, NFID’s medical director and an infectious disease specialist at the Cleveland Clinic. “We hope these recommendations will be adopted quickly by health care providers and the public to reverse the growing number of cases across all age groups.”
About Whooping Cough Immunization
Referred to by the Chinese as the “cough of 100 days,” whooping cough is a highly contagious respiratory infection that is characterized by a prolonged, dry cough sometimes associated with a signature “whoop” sound. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved two vaccines that protect against whooping cough, as well as two other vaccine-preventable diseases - tetanus and diphtheria. While one preparation protects both adolescents and adults, the other has been approved only for use in adolescents. CDC’s ACIP voted in June to recommend that adolescents be given a whooping cough booster. The childhood vaccine that currently is available can be given to children up to seven years of age.
In response to concern about the rising number of cases, NFID has been involved with a public education effort to increase awareness about the disease and the importance of preventive vaccination. In light of these new recommendations, NFID plans to expand its awareness activities.
About NFID
Founded in 1973, NFID is a non-profit organization dedicated to public and professional educational programs about the causes, treatment and prevention of infectious diseases. For more information about NFID, please contact the national office at 301/656-0003 or visit the NFID web site at http://www.nfid.org .
(1) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Immunization Program. Pertussis Surveillance Report, 2004 (Final data). August 12, 2005. Unpublished data.
(2) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Immunization Program. Pertussis Surveillance Report, 2003 (Final data). August 6, 2004. Unpublished data.
(3) Sabella, C. Pertussis: Old foe, persistent problem. Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine. July 2005; 72(7)601-608.
(4) Bisgard KM, et al. Infant Pertussis: Who Was the Source? Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal. 2004; 23(11):985-989.
The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
CONTACT: Jennifer Corrigan, +1-732-382-8898, corriganjenn@cs.com, for TheNational Foundation for Infectious Diseases
Web site: http://www.nfid.org/
