Pertussis - Annual Epidemiological Report for 2021

Surveillance report
Publication series: Annual Epidemiological Report
Time period covered: This report is based on data for 2021 retrieved from The European Surveillance System (TESSy) on 11 April 2024.
Cite:

Suggested citation: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Pertussis. In: ECDC. Annual epidemiological report for 2021. Stockholm: ECDC; 2024.

In 2021, 1 578 cases of pertussis were reported by 29 EU/EEA countries.

Executive Summary

  • Three countries (Austria, Germany and Poland) accounted for 69% of all reported cases.
  • The notification rate in 2022 was 0.4 cases per 100 000 population, which was the lowest rate in over a decade.
  • Infants below the age of one year were the most affected age group, with the highest notification rate followed by 1–4-year-olds. Individuals ≥ 15 years of age accounted for 77% of all cases reported.
  • The clinical presentation of pertussis in adolescents and adults may be mild and is often not recognised, which contributes to bacterial circulation in the population. This poses a transmission risk to infants who are too young to have completed the primary pertussis vaccination series.
  • The objectives of pertussis prevention and control include prevention of severe disease and deaths among infants < six months of age through well-adapted and implemented vaccination programmes. As of April 2024, 22 countries have implemented maternal immunisation programmes. The vaccination programmes in ten countries include more than one booster dose - including the pertussis component – in individuals above the age of 18 years.