Pertussis vaccination in infancy lowers the incidence of pertussis disease and the rate of hospitalisation after one and two doses: analyses of 10 years of pertussis surveillance.

Objectives: Shortly after pertussis vaccination was reintroduced in Sweden in 1996, an intensified pertussis disease surveillance programme was set up. In this study, we report on in-depth analyses of age-dose-number-specific incidences and the rate of pertussis hospitalisation for children with no, 1 or 2 doses of an acellular pertussis vaccine before pertussis disease. Vaccine coverage, the timeliness of childhood vaccination and the effect of later than scheduled pertussis vaccination(s) are also examined.