TY - JOUR AU - Ferreira, Inês AU - Pinto, Diana AU - Lavrador, Vasco AU - Fernandes, Alexandre AU - Reis, Maria Guilhermina AU - Guedes, Margarida AU - Marques, Laura PY - 2017/02/03 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - HOSPITALIZATION FOR PERTUSSIS – A TEN YEARS CASUISTIC FROM A LEVEL III HOSPITAL JF - NASCER E CRESCER - BIRTH AND GROWTH MEDICAL JOURNAL JA - REVNEC VL - 25 IS - 4 SE - Original Articles DO - 10.25753/BirthGrowthMJ.v25.i4.10797 UR - https://revistas.rcaap.pt/nascercrescer/article/view/10797 SP - 205-210 AB - <p align="justify"><strong>Background:</strong> Whooping cough remains a concern in pediatric age. Adolescents and adults are recognized as a source of disease transmission, particularly for infants without complete primary immunization. The objectives of this study were to characterize clinically and epidemiologicaly hospitalized pediatric cases of pertussis.</p><p align="justify"><strong>Material and methods:</strong> Retrospective, observational study of pediatric patients hospitalized at a level III Portuguese hospital with Bordetella pertussis infection confirmed by PCR DNA assay, between January 2005 and December 2014.</p><p align="justify"><strong>Results:</strong> Forty-three patients were admitted with an median duration of eight days. We observed a higher number of admissions in 2008 and 2012, with majority of cases in the summer. The median age was 2,5 months old (minimum 12 days; maximum 16 years), of which 86.0% (n=37) infants without complete primary vaccination. All patients had cough and 48.8% (n=21) had an identified epidemiological contact of pertussis. All were treated with macrolides, with a mean interval between onset of symptoms and treatment of eight days (minimum 2; maximum 60 days). Viral coinfection occurred in 21.6% (n=14). Ten patients were admitted to intensive care unit and two deceased.</p><p align="justify"><strong>Conclusions:</strong> Like other studies, there was a incidence peak in 2012. Infants were the most vulnerable age group to infection by Bordetella pertussis, with the highest number of hospitalizations. There is a need for additional prevention strategies to improve prevention in this age group.</p> ER -