Pregnant women reminded to get vaccinated against whooping cough

Public Health England (PHE) immunisation experts are reminding pregnant women of the importance of having the pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine as latest figures show the number of pregnant women accepting the vaccine has fallen and whooping cough cases are higher at this time of year.

In 2012 pertussis levels in England were at the highest level for 20 years. The highest
disease incidence was seen in infants under three months old and in 2012, 14 infants with confirmed pertussis died – one in the North West of England. The infants who died were all too young to be protected by their first dose of pertussis vaccine.

The whooping cough vaccination for pregnant women was introduced by the Department of Health in October 2012 following a record 9,368 cases of whooping cough in England last year. Initial uptake of the vaccination which is offered between weeks 28 and 38 of pregnancy was high, but more recent data shows that this has fallen.

Dr Rosemary McCann, Health Protection Lead in Greater Manchester for Public Health
England, said: “There is still a lot of whooping cough around and it is very dangerous in
young babies. We’ve recently seen a confirmed case in a young baby who was hospitalised whose mother did not receive the vaccine.

“We encourage all pregnant women to ensure they receive the vaccination to give their baby the best protection against whooping cough. By the prospective mum being immunised not only is the mum protected but also the unborn baby during one of the most vulnerable stages of life.

“It’s also important we continue to remind all parents to ensure their children are vaccinated against whooping cough to continue their protection through childhood.”
Parents should be alert to the signs and symptoms – which include severe coughing fits accompanied by the characteristic “whoop” sound in young children but as a prolonged cough in older children or adults. It is also advisable to keep babies away from older siblings or adults who have the infection.