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SM Vaccines and Vaccination Journal

Laboratory Detection of Bordetella pertussis: Are the Household Contacts a Major Sources of Infection for Infants?

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Received: 20-Oct-2015

Accepted: 23-Dec-2015

Published: 30-Dec-2015

Research Article | Volume 1 - Issue 3 | Article DOI :

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Daniela Leite1*, Luciano Moura Martins1 , Cleiton Eduardo Fiório1 , Roberta Morozetti Blanco1 , José Cassio de Moraes2 , Eitan N Berezin2 , Telma Regina MP Carvalhanas3 and Lucia Ferro Bricks4

1National Reference Laboratory for Pertussis, Instituto Adolfo Lutz, Brazil

2Epidemiology Department - Faculdade de Ciências Médicas da Santa Casa de São Paulo, School Medicine of Santa Casa de São Paulo, Brazil

3Division of Respiratory Diseases, Epidemiological Vigilance Center, State Secretary Office of Health, Brazil

4Sanofi Pasteur, Brazil

Corresponding Author:

Daniela Leite, Center of Bacteriology,

National Reference Laboratory for

Pertussis, Instituto Adolfo Lutz, Brazil,

Keywords

Pertussis; Sources of Infection; Infants; Household Contacts; Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis; Serotyping

Abstract

Bordetella pertussis is the causative agent of pertussis, an infectious disease highly communicable, with a secondary attack rate up to 90% among non immune household contacts. In Brazil there are few studies identifying infant pertussis sources. The aim of this study was to demonstrate a possible source of infection of B. pertussis among household contacts with infants confirmed with pertussis by laboratory criteria, using Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) that allows the identification of strains which can be epidemiologically linked to them.

From November/2011 to May/2012, nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from infants (< 7 months) suspected of pertussis. A total of 97 index cases were confirmed pertussis by PCR and/or culture. Samples were collected from up to five household contacts of each index case totaling 353. The strains were subtyped by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and serotyping.

A total of 97 index cases and theirs 28 household contacts had the pertussis diagnosis confirmed by culture and/or Real-Time PCR. Among them was possible to characterize five groups of index cases/household contacts linked according to the degree of relatedness and genetic profiles obtained by PFGE technique, indicating the parents as a probable source of transmission of the disease to infants. Accordingly to the serotypes, all the five groups presented an agreement among the results of the index cases and their household contacts.

Based on our available evidence, it can be assumed that parents were a possible source of infection for these infants under seven months of age.

Hence we suggest with this study that mothers and fathers still play an important role in transmitting this disease to unprotected infants and new strategies are necessary to prevent this important disease that represents a great threat to public health.

Citation

Leite D, Martins LM, Fiório CE, Blanco RM, Moraes JC, Berezin EN et al., Laboratory Detection of Bordetella pertussis: Are the Household Contacts a Major Sources of Infection for Infants?. SM Vaccine Vaccin. 2015;1(3):1012.