SynthesisThe Cochrane database of systematic reviews2007
Antibiotics for whooping cough (pertussis).
Synthesis in The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 165 citations in OpenAlex.
- Working group summary of the 2023 full update of the Finnish national guidelines for paediatric lower respiratory tract infections.Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992) · 2025Guideline
- Therapeutic Role of Hydroxyurea in Paediatric Hydroxyurea Pertussis:Sultan Qaboos University medical journal · 2025Pooled it
- SEVERE PERTUSSIS IN CHILDHOOD: UPDATE AND CONTROVERSY - SYSTEMATIC REVIEW.Revista paulista de pediatria : orgao oficial da Sociedade de Pediatria de Sao Paulo · 2019Pooled it
- Guideline
- Antibiotics for whooping cough (pertussis).The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2007Pooled it
- Review
- Genome-wide association studies builds a predictive model and reveals novel resistance features for macrolide-resistant Bordetella pertussis.The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy · 2026Article
- Clinical and laboratory characteristics of criticalFrontiers in pediatrics · 2026Article
- Genomic insights into Bordetella pertussis evolution and macrolide resistance in Yiwu, China.BMC genomics · 2025Article
- Efficacy and Safety of Combined Treatment with Traditional Herbal Medicine and Western Medicine for Children with Pertussis-like Syndrome: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Effect of Early Administration of Clarithromycin or Azithromycin on Symptoms of Pertussis in Infants.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Review
- Whooping cough in the most vulnerable: A case series of pertussis in infants younger than three months in Qatar.Qatar medical journal · 2025Article
- Real-Life Insights into Pertussis Diagnosis: High Yield of PCR Testing and Clinical Outcomes-An Emerging Old Enemy or Just a Sign of PCR Times?Journal of personalized medicine · 2024Article
- The Chaperonin TRiC/CCT Inhibitor HSF1A Protects Cells from Intoxication with Pertussis Toxin.Toxins · 2024Article
- Inhibition of Pertussis Toxin by Human α-Defensins-1 and -5: Differential Mechanisms of Action.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- Article
- Incidence of Pertussis in Anbar Province, West of Iraq, during 2009-2019.Archives of Razi Institute · 2021Article
- JMM Profile:Journal of medical microbiology · 2021Article
- Triggering Receptor Expressed on Myeloid Cells-1 (TREM-1) Contributes to Bordetella pertussis Inflammatory Pathology.Infection and immunity · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
- Update of
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWhooping cough is a highly contagious disease. Infants are at highest risk of severe disease and death. Erythromycin for 14 days is currently recommended for treatment and contact prophylaxis, but is of uncertain benefit.
objectivesTo study the benefits and risks of antibiotic treatment of and contact prophylaxis against whooping cough. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE) (The Cochrane Library Issue 1, 2007); MEDLINE (January 1966 to March 2007); EMBASE (January 1974 to March 2007). SELECTION CRITERIA: All randomised and quasi-randomised controlled trials of antibiotics for treatment of, and contact prophylaxis against, whooping cough. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Three to four review authors independently extracted data and assessed the quality of each trial. MAIN
resultsThirteen trials with 2197 participants met the inclusion criteria: 11 trials investigated treatment regimens; 2 investigated prophylaxis regimens. The quality of the trials was variable.Short-term antibiotics (azithromycin for three to five days, or clarithromycin or erythromycin for seven days) were as effective as long-term (erythromycin for 10 to 14 days) in eradicating Bordetella pertussis (B. pertussis) from the nasopharynx (relative risk (RR) 1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.98 to 1.05), but had fewer side effects (RR 0.66, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.83). Trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole for seven days was also effective. Nor were there differences in clinical outcomes or microbiological relapse between short and long-term antibiotics. Contact prophylaxis of contacts older than six months of age with antibiotics did not significantly improve clinical symptoms or the number of cases developing culture-positive B. pertussis. AUTHORS'
conclusionsAlthough antibiotics were effective in eliminating B. pertussis, they did not alter the subsequent clinical course of the illness. There is insufficient evidence to determine the benefit of prophylactic treatment of pertussis contacts.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.