Key Points

• The pertussis epidemic observed across the country since the beginning of 2024 continues, with very high levels of bacterial circulation that have intensified in recent months

• As of July 24, 2024, the latest update on the various pertussis surveillance indicators tracked by Santé publique France shows the following trends:

  • In Community Practice

    • The Sentinelles network reports a significant increase in confirmed pertussis cases since April, which intensified in June, with 225 cases between January 1 and June 30, 2024, compared to none in 2023 during the same period.

    • The number of SOS Médecins consultations for a diagnosis of pertussis increased 75-fold between Week 10 and Week 26.

  • In the hospital

    • The number of emergency room visits for pertussis remains very high: it increased 15-fold between weeks 10 and 27 before declining slightly.

    • The number of hospitalizations following emergency room visits has been rising since the start of the year: a sixfold increase between weeks 10 and 29, with a very significant rise since mid-May.

    • The RENACOQ network reports a cumulative total of 199 infants under 12 months of age hospitalized in 2024, of whom 158 (79%) are under 6 months old. This number is nearly five times higher than the total for 2023, which was 41 cases.

    • Regarding activity at private clinical laboratories, 3Labos data show a total of 24,874 positive PCR tests out of 112,938 tests performed since the beginning of 2024, representing a positivity rate of 22%. The number of monthly PCR tests increased 35-fold between January (1,927) and June (67,730) (provisional data).

    • In terms of deaths since the beginning of 2024, a provisional total of 28 deaths has been reported, including 20 children (18 under 1 year of age) and 8 adults (aged 51 to 86 years, but for whom pertussis was not listed as the primary cause of death). The highest number of deaths was observed in July, with 9 deaths.

    • Regarding monitoring of strain resistance to macrolides, 3 resistant strains have been identified at the CNR since the beginning of 2024 (3 out of 188 isolates tested, or 1.6%), and since June, no additional resistance has been detected.

• The magnitude of the peak and the duration of this epidemic cycle are unpredictable, and while certain indicators appear to be declining, interpretation must be cautious as the data for July have not yet been consolidated.

• Given the disease’s very high transmissibility and the epidemiological situation in France and internationally, heightened vigilance remains essential during the Olympic Games, particularly in cases of clusters involving individuals at risk of severe illness.

• Santé publique France reiterates the importance of vaccination for pregnant women, which has been recommended since April 2022 to protect newborns and young infants.

• As of July 22, 2024, the Haute Autorité de Santé (HAS) has recommended that anyone in close contact with a newborn and/or an infant under 6 months of age in a family or professional setting receive a pertussis booster if their last vaccination was more than 5 years ago.