Usual symptoms

• Pertussis causes a cough that can last for up to three months. 
• Pertussis spreads to about 90 per cent of unvaccinated people who are near someone with pertussis infection, even if the person is not obviously sick yet.

Rare symptoms

• About 0.8 per cent of babies who catch pertussis before they are six months old die from pneumonia or brain damage.

In Australia, children receive a combined vaccine (also called ‘hexavalent’), which strengthens immunity to pertussis, as well as diphtheria, tetanus, Hib, polio and hepatitis B.

It is recommended that children get a vaccine that protects against pertussis (whooping cough) at two months, four months, six months, 18 months and four years.

It is also recommended that adolescents are vaccinated at the beginning of high school, around 12-13 years of age (Year 7 or equivalent).

It is important that children get all their vaccinations on time to ensure they have the  best possible protection against infectious diseases.

The vaccine works by ‘training’ your child’s immune system to recognise and get rid of the pertussis (whooping cough) bacteria and their toxins. The vaccine contains antigens, which are tiny, harmless fragments of the pertussis (whooping cough) bacteria and their toxins. 

When your immune system detects the antigens in the vaccine, it produces proteins called antibodies. These antibodies are like soldiers that recognise and remember the pertussis (whooping cough) bacteria and their toxins. If your child is ever exposed to the real pertussis (whooping cough) bacteria and their toxins, their immune system will recognise them quickly and fight them off using the antibodies it created after vaccination.²

The pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine does not contain any blood products and is not a ‘live’ vaccine. The antigens are made synthetically and are not the real bacteria. They cannot replicate themselves or cause disease. 

Children aged between 1 and 4 years who have their first three doses of the pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine have an 83–89 per cent lower chance of being infected or hospitalised with pertussis (whooping cough).³ 

In Australia, pertussis (whooping cough) outbreaks can occur in the community.⁴  To keep your child’s protection against pertussis (whooping cough) up to date, your child is recommended to have another dose of pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine (a ‘booster’) when they are a teenager.⁴ They may also need further boosters as adults.⁴

No, there is no risk that your child will catch pertussis (whooping cough) because the vaccine does not contain the live bacteria that causes the disease.

• Up to 33 per cent of children who have vaccines that protect against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), Hib, or polio experience redness at the injection site that lasts up to a few days.
• About 10 to 13 per cent of people who have vaccines that protect against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), Hib, or polio  experience mild swelling or pain at the injection site that lasts one or two days. 
• Up to 20 per cent of children who have vaccines that protect against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), Hib, or polio  develop a mild fever that lasts one or two days.  
• About 5 to 10 per cent of babies who have vaccines that protect against polio  experience decreased appetite.
• About 2 per cent of people who get booster doses of a vaccine that protects against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (whooping cough) get a sore red, swollen arm. The swelling starts in the first two days after vaccination. It lasts for one to seven days and then gets better. 
• About 1 per cent of children who have a vaccine that protects against polio get a hard lump at the injection site that lasts a few days or weeks. 

• Babies who get a fever (for any reason) occasionally experience a fit (febrile convulsion) that lasts from a few seconds to a few minutes. Febrile convulsions don’t have long-term effects on a child’s health and development.
• Some people who get vaccines that protect against hepatitis B experience nausea or aches in their muscles or joints in the days afterwards.
• About 0.0032 per cent of children aged 12 months or under who get a vaccine that protects against pertussis (whooping cough) experience hypotonic-hyporesponsive episodes (HHE). These children get very pale, go limp, and don’t respond to their surroundings. Their lips and fingernails can also turn blue. Most reactions last less than 30 minutes and can occur anytime from vaccination up to about 48 hours after vaccination.² HHEs don’t have any long-term effects on children’s health.
• About 0.0001 per cent of people have an allergic reaction following vaccination  that affects their whole body, called anaphylaxis. This reaction usually happens within 15 minutes of getting the vaccination and can be treated with an injection of adrenaline. People who have this reaction usually recover quickly and don’t experience any long-term effects.

Since the introduction of the vaccine in 1953, the rates of pertussis (whooping cough) have declined. While there have been outbreaks in recent years, the rates are lower than the pre-vaccine rates.^6,7