TY - JOUR TI - Sero epidemiology of Bordetella pertussis Immune Responses in a Healthy Population in Northern Greece AU - Polyzou, A. AU - Pournaras, S. AU - Dafni, U. AU - Sofianou, D. AU - Christeli, E. AU - Patrinos, S. AU - Tsakris, A. JO - Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis PY - 2004 VL - 18 TODO - 3 SP - 211-214 PB - SN - 0887-8013, 1098-2825 TODO - 10.1002/jcla.20025 TODO - hemagglutinin; pertussis toxin, adolescent; adult; aged; antibody blood level; article; Bordetella pertussis; child; Greece; health program; human; immune response; immunization; infant; newborn; normal human; pertussis; population research; seroepidemiology, Adhesins, Bacterial; Adolescent; Adult; Age Distribution; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antibodies, Bacterial; Antigens, Bacterial; Bordetella pertussis; Child; Child, Preschool; Greece; Hemagglutinins; Humans; Immunoglobulin G; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Middle Aged; Pertussis Toxin; Retrospective Studies; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Virulence Factors, Bordetella; Whooping Cough, Bordetella; Bordetella pertussis TODO - A seroepidemiological study was conducted on a representative sample of the northern Greek population (healthy individuals, age range= 1 day to 80 years) to assess the prevalence of antibodies to pertussis toxin (PT) and filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA). Antibody concentrations were significantly elevated with age (analysis of variance (ANOVA), P<0.001). In addition, a significant increase in antibody levels was detected in subjects >50 years old compared to children aged 5-10 years (post-hoc Scheffe analysis, P=0.007). These data suggest that pertussis occurs frequently in Greek adults, and that sometimes a fifth booster vaccine dose is not given after the second year of life. Routine revaccination with the acellular vaccine for children >4 years of age, adolescents, and adults should be considered in order to ensure effective protection of the whole population. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc. ER -