Pertussis surveillance by small serosurveys of blood donors

Abstract

Serosurveys have established data about the distribution of immunoglobulin G (IgG)-antibodies to pertussis toxin (PT) in various populations. We tried to detect whether small serosurveys in blood donors could serve as a simple and inexpensive means to collect information about the circulation of Bordetella pertussis. We screened every donation in 307 adult blood donors aged 19-69 years for IgG-anti-PT by standardised enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), and the donors were followed between 2014 and 2016 for a total of 426 person-years. When we used a vertical survey with cut-offs of 100, 62.5 and 40 IU/ml, respectively, as an indicator for recent contacts with B. pertussis, nine (2.9%), 22 (7.2%) and 54 (17.6%) of donors had IgG-anti-PT titres above the respective levels. During the horizontal observation period of 426 person years, six significant increases and two conversions were found, which lead to an estimate of 1878 contacts/100.000 person-years (1.9% per year). Median and mean IgG-anti-PT concentrations remained relatively stable from year to year during the observation period. Our findings show that small serosurveys of blood donors offer a simple and cheap method for the surveillance of B. pertussis.

Cross-sectional seroprevalence study of antibody to Bordetella pertussis toxin in western Saudi Arabia: is there a need for a vaccine booster dose for adolescents and young adults?

“…A nationwide seroprevalence in a wider age range is suggested for better assessment of the magnitude of exposure and impact of vaccination interventions as well. However, seroepidemiological surveys of blood donors 47 and high-risk occupational groups (eg, HCWs and military personnel) may provide a more feasible and realistic estimate of pertussis infection. Immunity from infection or vaccination with pertussis is not permanent, 48 and the high circulation of this pathogen represents a threat to the most susceptible populations (ie, infants and the elderly).…”

Seroprevalence of Bordetella pertussis toxin antibodies in children and adolescents in Tunis, Tunisia

“…Demographic characteristics including age, gender, sibling under 5 years and history of long-lasting cough were not significantly associated with serology rates ( P > 0.05). Varied results have been described elsewhere [ 13 , 19 , 20 ].…”

“…This is likely due to the persisting vaccine-acquired immunity, that still be observed within 3 years from the last vaccination dose [ 18 , 21 ]. Increased anti-PT IgG levels have been observed in countries using the acellular vaccine, including the Netherlands [ 22 ] and Germany [ 13 ]. Moreover, it has been reported that DTwP primed-children are better protected against pertussis than DTaP primed adolescents [ 23 ].…”

“…In fact, determination of pertussis seroprevalence in a given population helps assess the immunity level and identify the target population for booster vaccination to reduce individual morbidity [ 12 ]. Moreover, small serosurveys in blood donors is a simple method for estimating a recent exposure to B. pertussis [ 13 ]. Unlike Tunisia, various countries have introduced booster doses of acellular pertussis vaccine (aP) for older children, adolescents and/or adults [ 14 , 15 ].…”

Seroprevalence of pertussis in Madagascar and implications for vaccination

“…The level of anti-PT IgG (IU/ml) is a marker of either pertussis infection or vaccination and is specific for B. pertussis [20][21][22]. The presence of anti-PT IgG was detected by quantitative analysis using a commercially available ELISA kit (EUROIMMUN, Lübeck, Germany).…”