Context

Pertussis (whooping cough) is an important cause of persistent cough, even in fully vaccinated individuals, where risk of pertussis increases with time since vaccination.1 ,2 In adults, symptoms may be milder and without the classical paroxysms, whoop and vomiting traditionally associated with pertussis, but nonetheless can be associated with considerable morbidity.1 Several previous studies have investigated incidence and clinical characteristics of pertussis in adults with persistent cough, including a recent study in New Zealand (2 weeks cough duration or greater, n=156 adults) in which 7% adults had laboratory-confirmed pertussis.3 The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence and clinical features of pertussis in adults presenting …