December 15, 2005 -- Whooping Cough Vaccination Recommended for Adolescents

The incidence of whooping cough in the United States has increased from a low of 1,060 cases in 1976 to more than 25,000 reported cases in 2004, and more than a third of the 2004 cases occurred in adolescents from 11 to 18 years of age. That is probably because protective immunity against pertussis decreases within five to ten years after the last childhood immunization, which may have been at the age of school entry or earlier. In a policy statement released yesterday, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is recommending universal vaccination of adolescents at ages 11-12, as well as catch-up vaccination of older adolescents, with the tetanus, toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid and acellular petussis vaccine (Tdap), which will replace the Td (tetanus and reduced diphtheria toxoids) vaccine in the childhood immunization schedule. The Td vaccine will continue to be used for booster doses for adolescents and adults. Additional information on the AAP recommendation is available at www.aap.org.