Importance of pertussis in older adults: A growing case for reviewing vaccination strategy in the elderly

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Vaccine
Volume 30, Issue 48, Pages 6729-6956 (6 November 2012)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/0264410X/30/48

The importance of pertussis in older adults: A growing case for reviewing vaccination strategy in the elderly
Review Article
Pages 6745-6752
Iman Ridda, Jiehui Kevin Yin, Catherine King, C. Raina MacIntyre, Peter McIntyre

Abstract
Pertussis or whooping cough is increasingly being shown to be a respiratory infection affecting the elderly and a significant percentage of older people infected with Bordetella pertussis experience considerable morbidity and even mortality. However, current knowledge of burden of disease is limited largely to passive surveillance data with little well-designed active surveillance to better ascertain the true burden of pertussis in the elderly, to inform vaccination strategies. The current review aims to identify gaps in knowledge to inform policy considerations relating to pertussis vaccination among the elderly.