Publication

Effectiveness of vaccination during pregnancy to prevent infant pertussis

Authored by:

Baxter R, Bartlett J, Fireman B et al.

Full Citation:

Baxter R, Bartlett J, Fireman B et al. 2017. Effectiveness of vaccination during pregnancy to prevent infant pertussis. Pediatrics. 139(5).

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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: A large study in California involving nearly 150,000 newborns found that vaccinating pregnant women with the Tdap vaccine provided 91% protection against pertussis infection among infants under 2 months of age and 88% protection before the infants had any vaccinations. The study also showed that vaccinating mothers during their pregnancy did not reduce the effectiveness of infant vaccination but that maternal Tdap vaccination provided additional protection to the infants through their first year of life.