A recent study sought to examine what, if any, increased risk of allergic conditions could be linked to immunization against pertussis (“whooping cough”) during childhood. Researchers at the University Hospital in Linkoping, Sweden, studied 669 children treated with one of three choices: 1) acellular pertussis vaccines, 2) whole-cell pertussis vaccines, or 3) vaccines against diphtheria and tetanus with no pertussis component included.
The study found that about 30% of children in each of the three groups developed allergic condition, such as hayfever, food allergy, hives, or eczema, by two-and-a-half years of age. Authors say whole-cell pertussis vaccines were associated with a 4% increased risk of allergies and that the acellular vaccine forms were associated with a 10% increased risk. Researchers say the findings do not support the theory put forth previously that pertussis vaccination should be withheld from infants due the increased allergy risk, especially if whole-cell vaccines are used. The study is in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.