Epidemia di pertosse in provincia di Catania (2002)

In the year 2002 a pertussis outbreak was reported in the province of Catania. The sources on incident cases were pertussis notification and number of hospitalisation extracted from administrative database. Seventy-two cases of pertussis in patients with median age of 11 months were reported. Pertussis affected predominantly infants (N=52) who were not immunized and with family contact with index of suspicion for pertussis. It appears that heard immunity does not offer adequate protection to the vulnerable group even in well-vaccinated populations. High vaccination coverage should be maintained and vaccination should be given as early an age as possible. The potential benefits of booster vaccination in adolescent and adults could be taken into the account.