The number of whooping cough or pertussis cases is on the rise in several states across the country. From Washington state to North Carolina to New York, doctors are seeing an increase in patients, particularly infants and small children, for which the disease can be most deadly.
The respiratory illness is highly contagious. According to the CDC, the number of confirmed cases for this time of year is much higher than in 2023. With 27,000 confirmed cases, 2024 marks the most significant surge in whooping cough in over a decade.
While doctors assure the public there is no need to panic, they advise everyone, especially parents of infants and young children, to be cautious. Common symptoms of the bacterial infection include a prolonged and violent cough, runny nose, and low-grade fever.
Early whooping cough symptoms mirror the common cold but can last weeks or months. The signature violent coughing attacks that come with whooping cough are what make it most dangerous to babies, who do not have the lung capacity and can often incur severe internal damage from the strain of repeated coughing. Doctors recommend exercising extreme caution if you have babies or small children in your life so as not to expose them to the illness.
The best way to prevent whooping cough is to get vaccinated. Most tetanus shots include whooping cough, so as long as teenagers and adults get their vaccine every decade, they should be covered.
Whooping cough is a highly contagious disease that spreads through the air. As long as someone is coughing, they are infectious. Doctors can usually treat pertussis with antibiotics, but the longer a patient goes without receiving treatment, the less effective medications become.
