Title |
The pertussis enigma: reconciling epidemiology, immunology and evolution
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Published in |
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, January 2016
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DOI | 10.1098/rspb.2015.2309 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Matthieu Domenech de Cellès, Felicia M. G. Magpantay, Aaron A. King, Pejman Rohani |
Abstract |
Pertussis, a highly contagious respiratory infection, remains a public health priority despite the availability of vaccines for 70 years. Still a leading cause of mortality in developing countries, pertussis has re-emerged in several developed countries with high vaccination coverage. Resurgence of pertussis in these countries has routinely been attributed to increased awareness of the disease, imperfect vaccinal protection or high infection rates in adults. In this review, we first present 1980-2012 incidence data from 63 countries and show that pertussis resurgence is not universal. We further argue that the large geographical variation in trends probably precludes a simple explanation, such as the transition from whole-cell to acellular pertussis vaccines. Reviewing available evidence, we then propose that prevailing views on pertussis epidemiology are inconsistent with both historical and contemporary data. Indeed, we summarize epidemiological evidence showing that natural infection and vaccination both appear to provide long-term protection against transmission and disease, so that previously infected or vaccinated adults contribute little to overall transmission at a population level. Finally, we identify several promising avenues that may lead to a consistent explanation of global pertussis epidemiology and to more effective control strategies. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 56 | 31% |
Canada | 8 | 4% |
Australia | 3 | 2% |
United Kingdom | 2 | 1% |
Ireland | 2 | 1% |
Spain | 2 | 1% |
South Africa | 1 | <1% |
Hungary | 1 | <1% |
Netherlands | 1 | <1% |
Other | 2 | 1% |
Unknown | 102 | 57% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 150 | 83% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 22 | 12% |
Scientists | 6 | 3% |
Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 2 | 1% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 2 | 1% |
United States | 1 | <1% |
France | 1 | <1% |
Vietnam | 1 | <1% |
Unknown | 160 | 97% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Researcher | 29 | 18% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 23 | 14% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 21 | 13% |
Student > Master | 15 | 9% |
Student > Bachelor | 14 | 8% |
Other | 31 | 19% |
Unknown | 32 | 19% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Medicine and Dentistry | 44 | 27% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 21 | 13% |
Immunology and Microbiology | 16 | 10% |
Mathematics | 7 | 4% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 6 | 4% |
Other | 28 | 17% |
Unknown | 43 | 26% |