Publication

Cost-effectiveness of pertussis vaccination during pregnancy in the US

Authored by:

Atkins KE, Fitzpatrick MC, Galvani AP, Townsend JP

Full Citation:

Atkins KE, Fitzpatrick MC, Galvani AP, Townsend JP 2016. Cost-effectiveness of pertussis vaccination during pregnancy in the US. American Journal of Epidemiology. 183(12).

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Additional key concepts from this publication:

Maternal immunization offers an opportunity to protect the mother and fetus, but also passes this protection on to the infant after birth.

Key Evidence: Pertussis causes nearly 200,000 deaths in children worldwide, nearly all in infants too young to be vaccinated. Vaccinating pregnant women against pertussis with a single dose of Tdap vaccine would be 89% effective in protecting infants against the disease over their first 2 months of life and would reduce pertussis incidence in newborns in the U.S. by 68% (assuming 75% of mothers are vaccinated).

The indirect benefit of immunization to unvaccinated individuals (herd immunity) increases the cost-effectiveness of vaccines.

From the VoICE Editors: The analysis assumes a vaccination cost of ≈$44 per dose.