Despite high coverage of vaccinations, incidence of pertussis (whooping
cough) has been increasing throughout the world and large outbreaks were
reported in several countries. Adolescents and adults with atypical
pertussis symptoms have become the main sources of infants' pertussis.
Since clinicians are lack of experience in making diagnosis based on
atypical symptoms, laboratory methods are needed. The currently
recommended laboratory methods include bacterial culture, PCR and
serology ELISA. It is well known that sensitivity and specificity of the
above-mentioned methods may vary depending on many factors such as
status of vaccination, timing of specimen collection and onset of
symptoms. Serology ELISA to measure specific anti-pertussis toxin IgG
antibodies in serum has been proven to be one suitable method for the
diagnosis of pertussis infection in adolescents and adults. In this
review, we summarize the current status of methods used in China and
other countries for the laboratory diagnosis of pertussis and discuss
the clinical relevance of serology ELISA for pertussis diagnosis.