Uptake of pertussis immunization in pregnancy and determinants of vaccination in Toronto, Canada.

Introduction: Pertussis causes significant morbidity and mortality in infants aged <6 months. Maternal pertussis vaccination during pregnancy has been recommended in Canada since 2018 to reduce these negative outcomes. In the absence of routine immunization coverage data, our objective was to evaluate uptake in Toronto, Canada.
Methods: We recruited mother-infant pairs at The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, between 2018 and 2020. We performed logistic regression to examine associations between demographics and self-reported pertussis vaccination.
Results: 76/243 mothers (31.3 %) reported receiving pertussis vaccination during their most recent pregnancy. Odds of receiving vaccination more than doubled with each 1-year increase in year of pregnancy (aOR: 2.2; 95 % CI: 1.3, 3.6; p < 0.01) and among those born in Canada as compared to those not (aOR: 2.0; 95 % CI: 1.1, 3.6; p = 0.02) CONCLUSION: Uptake of pertussis vaccination during pregnancy in Ontario has increased in recent years, however coverage remains lower than desirable.
Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Scott Halperin reports financial support was provided by Sanofi Pastuer. Scott Halperin reports financial support was provided by GlaxoSmithKline. Todd Hatchette reports financial support was provided by GlaxoSmithKline. Todd Hatchette reports financial support was provided by Pfizer. Shelly Bolotin is the Director of the Centre for Vaccine Preventable Diseases (CVPD) at the University of Toronto. The CVPD receives operational support from a mix of funding sources, including through donations from pharmaceutical companies. A robust set of governance practices are in place to safeguard the academic freedom of the CVPD.
(Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)