Pertussis Immunization in Pregnancy: A Review

The pregnant woman has an altered immune response and, for some pathologies, is at increased risk of infection and of developing complications and serious outcomes. In addition, maternal infections can result in congenital anomalies, malformations or severe neonatal diseases. Vaccination of pregnant women can therefore have a double goal: to protect the mother from diseases that could have an impact on her health and to avoid infection/disease transmission to the fetus or the newborn. Despite the potential benefits of immunization in pregnant women, it is still evident reluctance and/or refusal of vaccinations by health professionals as well as by pregnant women, who are wary of the real advantages linked to vaccines. Concerning pertussis, immunization is strongly recommended in pregnancy and some data are already available in Europe as well as in other parts of the world. This review describes the rationale for this immunization and summarizes available data around the world.