A new California Department of Public Health study finds infants are less likely to get severely ill from whooping cough if their mothers were vaccinated against the disease.

A new study from the California Department of Public Health shows some benefits of the pertussis, or TDAP, vaccine.

The study involved 690 babies less than two months of age who had pertussis, also known as whooping cough. Infants that young are at greatest risk of becoming severely ill from the disease.

Researchers found infants whose mothers received the pertussis vaccine during pregnancy were significantly less likely to be hospitalized or die from the illness.

As of Oct. 20, 4,211 cases of pertussis have been reported in California.

Doctors recommend that pregnant women get the pertussis vaccine during their third trimester.

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