More about Pertussis vaccine
Both acellular (aP) and whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccines are safe and effective. In terms of rare, more severe adverse reactions, aP and wP vaccines appear to have the same high level of safety. However, mild-to-moderate adverse reactions are more commonly associated with wP vaccines, and tend to increase with client age and the number of injections. This is why wP vaccines are not recommended for use in adolescents and adults where aP vaccines rather come to use.
Because the price of wP is considerably less than aP, where resources are limited and the vaccine is well accepted by the local population, wP vaccine remains the vaccine of choice. In countries where a higher rate of adverse reactions after immunization with wP prevents high vaccination coverage, aP is recommended instead, at least for booster injections.30