Coqueluche

Abstract

Whooping cough is a human respiratory bacterial infection, dramatic for newborns and older patients. The causal agents of the disease are Bordetella pertussis and parapertussis. These extracellular bacteria that secrete adhesins and toxins are responsible for the local and systemic cytopathogenic effects observed during the disease. Intensive vaccination of children with killed bacteria has resulted in an important decrease of mortality and morbidity. However, generalized vaccination has conducted to a change in the transmission of the disease due to the short duration of the vaccine immunity and the lack of vaccine or natural boosters. Today, the disease affects adolescents and adults who present with an atypical cough difficult to diagnose, and who contaminate non vaccinated newborns. For this reason, many countries including France have decided to add in vaccination modalities vaccine boosters for adolescents and young adults. Nevertheless, surveillance of the disease is of great importance and must continue to analyse the consequences of such boosters which are introduced to reduce the transmission of the disease to infants too young to be vaccinated.