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Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
What is whooping cough?
Whooping cough or pertussis, is an easily spread disease caused by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis. In the past, whooping cough was common and caused a lot of deaths in children. After a whooping cough vaccine was made, the number of people with whooping cough decreased.
Why has there been so much talk about whooping cough this year?
This year a lot more people have gotten whooping cough. A whooping cough outbreak was announced in California in June 2010. There have also been more deaths from whooping cough. All the deaths have been in children less than 6 months old.
People of all ages can get whooping cough but babies are most in danger of having problems from it. The most common problem is pneumonia. Pneumonia is one of the big reasons why babies die from whooping cough. Other problems are seizures and brain damage.
How does whooping cough spread?
Whooping cough is spread by tiny wet drops produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. People with whooping cough can spread the disease from the time they get a runny nose begins until 3 weeks after their cough start. People with whooping cough can prevent spreading the disease if they take the right antibiotics.
Older children and adults, including parents, often have mild disease. They can spread whooping cough and not know it. This is because they do not feel very sick so they do not see a doctor or get treated. People with whooping cough should get treated with antibiotics. They should avoid close contact with others, especially babies and pregnant women, until they have taken 5 days of the right antibiotics.
How can I protect myself and my family from getting sick with whooping cough?
Vaccine
The best way to protect yourself and your family from getting sick with whooping cough is to get the whooping cough vaccine. Vaccination for whooping cough should start early in infancy and continue through childhood with the DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis) vaccine. Because the vaccine wears off over time, vaccination should continue into adolescence and adulthood with the Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis) vaccine.
- All adolescents and adults should receive the whooping cough vaccine (Tdap). We recommend that everyone be up-to-date with the whooping cough vaccine, especially if you have close contact to infants or pregnant women.
- Pregnant women should receive the whooping cough vaccine (Tdap) either during pregnancy or immediately after birth. The whooping cough vaccine is considered safe during pregnancy.
- Although the vaccine is licensed for those under age 65, we recommend that adults age 65 and older receive one whooping cough vaccine (Tdap). This is especially important for those adults 65 and older who are around an infant.
- There is no minimum interval between the last tetanus vaccine (Td) and the whooping cough vaccine (Tdap).
- Talk to your doctor to see if you should get the whooping cough vaccine.
Please click here to learn more about vaccine and where you can get vaccinated.
Prevention
It is important for some of the people who have had close contact to infected persons to receive antibiotic medication to prevent infection:
- Infants <1 year old
- Pregnant women in their 3rd trimester
- People who have close contact with pregnant women and infants (including certain health care workers)
If you know that you or family members have been exposed to whooping cough, contact your doctor. Close contact is defined as sharing toys, food, or utensils, face-to-face contact, direct exposure to cough, sneeze, or secretions, or sharing a confined space for over one hour.
Healthy Habits
All people should practice healthy habits by washing hands often, covering coughs and staying home when sick. Click here to learn more about healthy habits.
What are the symptoms and signs of whooping cough?
Whooping cough has 3 stages:
- In the first stage there is runny nose, sneezing, low-grade fever, and a mild cough that gets worse over a period of 1-2 weeks.
- During the second stage the patient has bursts or attacks of cough. At the end of each burst, there can be a high-pitched "whoop" sound. For an example of the sound click here. This can be a dangerous stage for infants and young children. During coughing attacks they may turn blue, and appear very ill or look like they are having difficulty breathing. Vomiting and tiredness can follow these cough episodes. This stage usually lasts 1-6 weeks.
- In the third stage the cough slowly disappears over 2-3 weeks. Many people will have coughing attacks with later colds or other infections.
The whooping cough vaccine is very good but not 100% effective and its protection wears off over time. Also people who have had whooping cough can get it again. Sometimes people who have been vaccinated or had the illness before have whooping cough symptoms that are different (not as severe) as what is described above. It is important to think about the possibility of whooping cough even in people that have been vaccinated or had the illness before.
If you think that you have whooping cough you should contact your doctor.
How is whooping cough treated?
Antibiotics are most helpful if started during the first stage of the disease. When taken early antibiotics can help improve symptoms. If taken later, but still during the first three weeks of illness, antibiotics may not help with symptoms but will help stop the spread of disease by making the infected person less contagious (click here for dosing guidelines).
Useful Pertussis Links