In the past decade, pertussis has made a global resurgence, driving reconsideration of national immunisation schedules and vaccine usage. A workshop held by the Ministry of Health in 2015 discussed New Zealand’s pertussis disease control strategies.

Pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious respiratory disease. It causes severe bouts of coughing, which may be accompanied by vomiting and a whooping sound.

This page provides an overview of pertussis (whooping cough), from what it is and how you catch it, to how you can prevent it through vaccination.

This page provides quick access to IMAC's pertussis (whooping cough) resources, and links to other helpful resource pages.

Pertussis vaccinations are free and so important for hapū mama and young children.

Adacel® is approved for use as a booster vaccine to increases a person’s existing immunity to tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (whooping cough).

Though it is believed the switch from whole cell to acellular pertussis vaccine has contributed to the resurgence of pertussis disease, few studies have evaluated vaccine effectiveness (VE) and duration of protection provided by an acellular vaccine schedule including three primary doses but no toddler-age dose.

The Effectiveness of Pertussis Immunisation in Children (EPIC) study data provides good evidence that the current National Immunisation Schedule protects against severe pertussis in infants and children.

Boostrix is administered as part of the National Immunisation Schedule at 11 years of age. The vaccine is delivered in the school-based vaccination programme to children in Year 7 in most parts of the country. In other areas it is provided in general practice.