Epidemiological characteristics and vaccination profiles of pertussis in Xicheng District, Beijing, China, 2014–2025

Pertussis has resurged globally, yet detailed local data integrating epidemiology and individual vaccination histories remain limited in China. We described the temporal trends, age distribution, and pre-onset vaccination characteristics of reported pertussis cases in Xicheng District, Beijing, from 2014 to 2025. This retrospective surveillance study included all pertussis cases reported in Xicheng District with symptom onset between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2025. Data were extracted from infectious disease surveillance and childhood vaccination registries. A valid pre-onset dose was defined as vaccination ≥ 14 days before symptom onset. Annual reported incidence was calculated using resident population denominators. Sensitivity analyses examined the exclusion of 2020–2022 from the baseline and an alternative ≥ 21-day vaccination threshold. Among 228 cases, annual reported incidence remained low during 2014–2022 (0.000–0.848/100,000), rose to 5.369/100,000 in 2023, and peaked at 10.502/100,000 in 2024. In 2025, 8 cases were reported, corresponding to 0.733/100,000, with no cases occurring from July through December. The age distribution shifted markedly: infants aged < 1 year accounted for 80.4% (37/46) of cases in 2014–2022, whereas children aged 5–9 years comprised 64.4% (38/59) in 2023 and 67.8% (78/115) in 2024. Among 126 cases aged 5–9 years, 98.4% had received four valid doses; the median interval from the last valid dose to onset was 5.4 years (IQR: 4.7–6.0). Infants < 3 months had no valid pre-onset doses. The temporal and age-distribution patterns persisted after excluding 2020–2022, and vaccination-history results were identical under the two thresholds. Reported pertussis incidence in Xicheng District, Beijing, China, increased during 2023–2024 and declined in 2025, with a shift in case distribution from infants to school-aged children. The vaccination histories of cases aged 5–9 years were consistent with waning vaccine-induced protection. These findings provide local evidence to inform evaluation of China’s revised immunization programme, including the fifth DTaP dose introduced at 6 years of age in 2025.