Whooping Cough Vax In Pregnancy To Protect Baby

New Delhi: Vaccinating pregnant women against whooping cough can boost the quantity and quality of antibodies in the early life of infants, according to a study.

Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is a highly contagious respiratory infection characterised by severe coughing spells that can end in a high-pitched "whoop" when inhaling. It is caused by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis.

Despite extensive vaccinations, the disease has resurged. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are 16 million cases annually and approximately 195,000 deaths in children globally.

Researchers at the University of Turku in Finland conducted a randomised, controlled, double-blind, phase 4 trial in Gambia to evaluate the effect of pertussis immunisation in pregnancy.

Two types of pertussis vaccines are currently used worldwide: whole-cell vaccines (wPVs) based on killed whole bacteria and acellular vaccines (aPVs) based on one to five purified bacterial antigens.