12.7.04
Whooping Cough

Whooping cough is making a comeback – 40 years after most industrialized countries started vaccinating children against it.

Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, has been on the rise in the United States for two decades. Last year, 11,000 cases were reported. Dr. Subhash Chaudhary, professor of pediatric infectious diseases at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield, says the disease can be especially serious for young infants.

SOUND BITE: "It is a very annoying disease – the cough, vomiting, face turning blue till can’t cough any more. But in younger infants under the age of 1 year, especially those with under the age of 2 months and damage can cause many more problems. They can quit breathing -- what we call apnea and they can develop pneumonia. They can develop seizures . . ."

Dr. Chaudhary says whooping cough can be so severe in very young babies that they sometimes die from it. Others most often affected by the disease are teenagers and young adults because the immunity from the vaccine that they received as a young child doesn’t last into the teen years. Symptoms experienced by teens may not be as severe as they are in babies. Antibotic treatment is prescribed for all ages says Chaudhary.

SOUND BITE: " . . . young children, very infants, especially under the age of 2 or 3 months, need to be admitted to the hospital because they are having so trouble with breathing and maybe throwing up so many times, initially when we have to give them intravenous fluid because they cannot keep anything down. In addition, small frequent breathing, rest to the child, oxygen."

Dr. Chaudhary recommends that anyone who has a persistent cough for two weeks should see a primary care physician for diagnosis and treatment. Infants with a persistent cough should be sooner.