Whooping cough in children is spreading over California and Nevada

Recently, outbreaks of whooping cough in children have been seen recently in California and Nevada.

California has seen a sharp increase in cases of whooping cough, a highly contagious respiratory disease once thought to be nearly eradicated.

State data shows the number of reported cases of whooping cough, also known as pertussis, rose from 1,023 in 2012 to 1,669 last year. About 83 percent of the cases were in children ages 7 to 16, theSacramento Bee reported recently. Ninety-nine patients went to the hospital, but no deaths were reported.

California health officials say one reason for the increase is declining immunity among children who were vaccinated years earlier but haven’t gotten the booster shot recommended at ages 11 or 12. Other factors include the disease’s cyclical nature and more parents opting out of immunizations for their children.

Nevada County saw the sharpest increase in cases per 100,000 residents, from five in 2012 to 70 cases last year. Marin County ranked second, with 173 cases in 2013.

“Evidence shows that pertussis outbreaks are more likely in communities with clusters of unvaccinated people,” said Dr. Ken Cutler, Nevada County’s health officer. “It is also clear that people who are unvaccinated are more likely than those who are vaccinated to get pertussis and to have more severe symptoms.”

Caused by a bacterium, whooping cough causes violent coughing that makes it hard to catch one’s breath. Coughing spells can last for 10 weeks. It typically affects babies and young children and can be fatal for infants younger than 1 year old.

“Babies who are really young do not have the protection they need against the disease,” said Olivia Kasirye, Sacramento County’s public health officer. “They depend on the community for the protection.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year received reports of 48,000 cases of pertussis nationwide last year, more than in any other year after immunizations became widely available.

California is one of 20 states that allow parents to exempt their children from public school immunization requirements if they have personal objections.

Read more here

Whooping Cough - An Under Recognized Cause of Prolonged Cough

Whooping Cough Scare In Middle School

Most kids vaccinated, but many adults are not

By Bridget LeRoy | April 5, 2012 - 12:30pm

    Pertussis, the highly infectious bacterial disease also known as whooping cough, has made an appearance at the East Hampton Middle School, where one case was reported last week. A letter from the Suffolk County Department of Health was almost immediately put up on the East Hampton Union Free School District’s Web site, and was given to staff and parents at all the schools in the East Hampton system.
    Dr. Gail Schonfeld of East End Pediatrics said on Tuesday that she has diagnosed four cases in the last three weeks, including a 3-month-old infant who was admitted to the hospital but eventually recovered.
    Most children have been vaccinated against the illness, and the vaccine is reported to be 95 percent effective. However, when a child, particularly a baby, gets infected with pertussis, the results can be very serious and sometimes fatal.
    Pertussis is spread through the air by the cough of an infected individual. A course of antibiotics is usually helpful, while cough syrups and elixirs are not.
    According to the Suffolk County Department of Health, in a letter that is posted on the East Hampton School District’s Web site, “A person with pertussis is infectious for 21 days from the start of the cough or until he/she has been on five full days of appropriate antibiotic therapy. Children and adults may be susceptible and still develop pertussis even if they are up to date with their vaccinations, as immunity to pertussis wanes over the years.”
    Whooping cough earned its name by the distinctive whooping sound made by someone with the illness as they attempt to draw in breath. “In between coughing fits, a patient could feel pretty good,” Dr. Schonfeld said. “But when they start coughing, they can’t stop. There is really thick mucus that blocks the airways, so there is a feeling of not being able to breathe.”
    Patients with pertussis often have other cold-like symptoms: fever, nausea, a runny nose. But it is the whooping and gasping for air that are the surest signs. In other countries, it is sometimes known as the “100-day cough.”
    According to the Web site for the World Health Organization, in 2008, 16 million people were affected worldwide and 195,000 children died from the illness.
    “Pertussis has been with us a long, long time,” Dr. Schonfeld said on Tuesday. “Only 10 percent of the cases were diagnosed until recently, but now we have a test that’s fairly accurate.” The test involves a “skinny little Q-tip” being inserted way back in the throat. “It’s not a really pleasant sensation,” she said.
    Up until 2005, she continued, there was no vaccine approved for children over 7 years old. Therefore, many adults could have the disease without knowing it. “If a cough lasts for more than a month in an adult, one-third of the time it’s pertussis,” Dr. Schonfeld said. Only a small percentage of adults in the U.S. have been vaccinated, but there is currently a campaign in progress to encourage adults — particularly those who spend time around a newborn — to get immunized.
    Another unpleasant fact: Getting pertussis once does not bring immunity to the illness. “You can get it more than once,” Dr. Schonfeld said.

Read more here:
http://easthamptonstar.com/?q=News/2012405/Whooping-Cough-Scare-Middle-School