Pertussis manifesting as recurrent cough and wheezing in an incompletely vaccinated 8-month-old infant.

Pertussis is an acute respiratory illness caused by Bordetella pertussis, showing a re-emergence in developed countries. However, it is probably under-recognised and, as a consequence, its burden is underestimated. Here, we report the clinical case of an infant diagnosed with pertussis, despite a regular schedule of vaccination, thanks to a careful clinical evaluation, including personal and family history. In addition to pointing the attention on a precocious diagnosis of atypical cases of pertussis, this case report further raised the issue of modifying and/or implementing the immunisation strategy, considering the ongoing changes of social (eg, immigration) and sanitary (eg, vaccine coverage) background in Italy and all over the Europe. © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd (unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.