Burden of pertussis ‘unchanged’, says ECDC

Gary Finnegan

Gary Finnegan

December 7th, 2010

Gary Finnegan
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Pertussis_bacteriaThe number of pertussis cases remains broadly unchanged in Europe but infants still carry the major burden in terms of incidence and hospitalisation, according to a new report by European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) – the EU agency dealing with health surveillance.

A total of 20,591 pertussis cases were reported in the 28 countries that provide figures to the ECDC. This translates into an incidence of 4.9 per 100,000.

The highest incidences were reported by Norway and Estonia where the rate is 114.3 and 46.9 per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively.

Infants had the highest number of cases (22 cases per 100,000) followed by children aged between 10 and 14 years (20 cases per 100,000).

To read the full report, click here