Immunization Newsbriefs © Copyright Information Inc., Bethesda, MD. Brought to you by the National Network for Immunization Information (NNii). Visit NNii’s new website at http://www.immunizationinfo.org.

March 6, 2002

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

“An Old Childhood Disease Reappears”

New York Times (www.nytimes.com) (03/05/02) P. D7

A recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that the incidence of pertussis has been increasing, especially within the past decade, since the hitting a record low of 1,010 cases in 1976.  According to a report in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, there were 6,564 cases of pertussis in 1997 and 7,867 in 2000.  Less than one-third of the cases were in babies under one year old, and 29 percent involved adolescents.  Pertussis caused the hospitalization of 63 percent of infants under six months old, and because children that young are not yet ready to get vaccinated, an editorial in the publication recommended several steps to reduce the spread of the disease, including “minimizing infant exposures to children and adults with cough disorders.”

ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR LEGAL ADVICE.  THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.