Whooping Cough

Written by: Dr. Marcia Whalen

As you have probably heard, whooping cough, also known as pertussis, has been very widespread in California. It is a highly contagious respiratory tract infection. Although it initially resembles an ordinary cold, whooping cough may eventually turn more serious, particularly in infants.  Whooping cough is most contagious before the coughing starts.  Whooping cough is a serious disease that causes coughing fits often followed by vomiting. It has a distinct sound to it and can last for months.  It can be deadly for infants and is easily transmitted to them from older siblings and parents.

For those of you with children, you have probably received a letter from their school stating that according to new law AB354, all students entering into 7th grade or above, starting in July 2011, will need proof of an adolescent whooping cough booster shot, called Tdap, before starting school. (The childhood vaccine is called DTaP.)

Why has this happened?  During 2010, several states have reported an increase in cases and/or localized outbreaks of pertussis, including a state-wide epidemic in California. Localized outbreaks are not uncommon and occur throughout the year. Over the last 5 years, 8,000-25,000 cases of pertussis were reported per year in the United States.

We recommend that you plan to get your child vaccinated as soon as possible, and please do not wait until summer when there is going to be a rush of parents attempting to meet the requirement.  Tdap is a booster that protects against 3 dangerous diseases:  tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough.  In addition to children 10 years and older, we also recommend that parents and others at home get vaccinated as well.  Even if you have had whooping cough in the past, you should still get the Tdap booster shot as the immunity developed after having whooping cough disease does wear off.

For more information, please visit http://www.cdc.gov/features/pertussis/ for more information.  For our clients, please contact us here or call (949) 706-3300 to setup an immunization appointment.