Maternal pertussis vaccination and its effects on the immune response of infants aged up to 12 months in the Netherlands: an open-label, parallel, randomised controlled trial -

Maternal pertussis vaccination and its effects on the immune response of infants aged up to 12 months in the Netherlands: an open-label, parallel, randomised controlled trial
Information type: Randomised controlled trials
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases
Specialities: Allergy and immunology | Paediatric and neonatal medicine | Vaccination
Summary
Dutch RCT (n=118) found higher concentrations of pertussis toxin antibodies in infants in the maternal Tdap group (mother received tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis vaccine at 30-32 weeks of pregnancy) than in the control group.
UKMi comment
Authors state that these results suggest that maternal vaccination supports a delay of the first pertussis vaccination in infants until at least age 3 months

A related commentary discusses this research. Whenever coverage of maternal pertussis vaccination is expected not to be high enough, authorities should invest in additional research on alternative vaccination strategies or investigate the possible barriers to acceptance by health-care workers and the target population before introducing this combined maternal–infant vaccination schedule with delayed infant vaccination at the start of life.
Related links: Comment