Pertussis Outbreak Hits Florida Preschoolers Report casts doubt on vaccine effectiveness

Twenty-six preschoolers in Leon County, Fla., became ill with pertussis or pertussis-like symptoms -- even though many were current on their vaccinations -- after a classmate developed the illness, according to a study published by the CDC. Officials attributed this outbreak to a combination of the children's incomplete vaccination status, waning immunity due to vaccine type, possible provider error, and perhaps the emergence of vaccine-resistant bacteria. The "attack rate" among children age 1-5 at the preschool was 22%, reported James Matthias, MPH, of the Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee, and colleagues writing in Emerging Infectious Diseases. http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/Vaccines/55647?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2016-01-14&eun=g721819d0r