An infant died on April 24 in Nice from whooping cough. While France is experiencing an increase in cases of this very contagious condition, health authorities are recalling the importance of vaccination.
A three-week-old infant died of whooping cough at CHU-Lenval in Nice (Alpes-Maritimes) on April 24. The hospital had admitted three other newborns to intensive care suffering from the same condition. Since then, the Lenval Foundation has launched a call for vaccination against whooping cough. This tragedy echoes the resurgence of the disease observed in France since the start of the year. Very contagious, this respiratory condition is transmitted through the air. It spreads quickly within homes. Unvaccinated infants are among those most at risk. Because 90% of deaths caused by whooping cough occur during the first six months of life.
70 cases of whooping cough reported
Whooping cough resurfaces every three to five years. The last peak observed by the RENACOQ network (hospital pertussis surveillance network) dated from 2017 with 162 cases. Since the first quarter of 2024, health authorities have already recorded 70 cases. “Around fifteen clusters, mainly in communities (nursery, primary schools, daycare centers and nursery homes) but also in families {…} have been reported. », Detailed the National Public Health Agency on its site. For comparison, the RENACOQ network had listed 45 cases for the year 2022 and 39 cases in 2023.
The importance of vaccination
Vaccination is the only way to fight whooping cough. With an effectiveness that varies from 85% to 100%, it protects for five to ten years. Since 2018, vaccination has been compulsory for infants. It requires an injection at two months and another at four months. Then, several reminders are spread out until adulthood. The vaccine is also recommended for pregnant women during the second or third trimester of pregnancy. At the time of birth, the fetus thus has a sufficient quantity of antibodies. Failing this, the mother can be vaccinated during the first six months of the infant’s life, like her immediate entourage.
A worrying situation on a European scale
This vaccination policy for pregnant women exists in around thirty countries around the world. Despite this initiative, the situation is also worrying in other states, where cases are increasing. This is the case in Belgium, Spain and Germany. In the United Kingdom, a 2022 study found that the vaccination rate of pregnant women had fallen to 61.5%, its lowest level since 2016. From January to November 2023, 1,141 cases were detected in England and Wales according to the UK Health Security Agency. But the situation appears to be most explosive in the Netherlands, where the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment has recorded 5,303 cases of whooping cough since the start of the year. Of the 276 children affected, four newborns died.
