Whooping Cough

Whooping cough (also called "pertussis") is a serious disease.

The symptoms of whooping cough include:

a choking cough, often severe, which may last several minutes
coughing attacks which end in vomiting
there may be a high pitched "whoop" sound when the child tries to breathe in after coughing. This "whoop" is usually heard in older babies and toddlers.

Whooping cough is very dangerous in young babies.

Babies often do not have the "whoop", but may stop breathing during coughing.

The cough is often worse at night. Children usually seem well between periods of coughing. Symptoms can last up to three months.

Children with whooping cough can also get:

ear infections
pneumonia
convulsions
exhaustion/lost sleep
weight loss
injuries such as burst blood vessels from the coughing attacks
in severe cases, brain damage from lack of oxygen to the brain.

Pertussis Management Guidelines
Whooping Cough (Pertussis) background
Whooping Cough poster
Whooping Cough radio clip

Whooping cough affects young children most severely, but older children and adults can catch it and spread it to young children. Usually, adults don't get much more than a mild cough for a few weeks, but they can still spread the disease to children.

Whooping cough is very easily spread from person to person by coughing. A person with whooping cough can spread it for 2-3 weeks during the early part of the illness, unless treated with the right antibiotic.

Treatment

If you think that you or your child has whooping cough symptoms, you should see your doctor as soon as possible. If it is whooping cough, antibiotic treatment may be offered. Treatment may also be offered to the whole family if there are other children aged less than one year in the family.

The antibiotics do not usually reduce the severity of illness, (they can’t cure whooping cough), but they help prevent whooping cough from spreading if given early enough.

Immunisation

Immunisation is the best way to prevent whooping cough. Children should be immunised at the ages of six weeks, three months, five months, 15 months and four years. It is important to start immunisations at the recommended time because younger babies are most likely to get serious complications from whooping cough. Immunisation doesn’t start to give useful protection until at least three doses have been given.

Immunisation prevents whooping cough in about 80% of children. Protection usually lasts at least several years.

Even if they have been immunised, some children still catch whooping cough, but usually do not get as sick. Because they don’t get it until they are older, they are much less likely to get the serious complications of the disease. If most children are immunised then whooping cough cannot spread as easily.

There can be some side effects after immunisation, including a sore and swollen arm or leg for a few days, fever, being off food and crying. The side effects from immunisation are far less dangerous than whooping cough and happen much less often since a new (acellular) form of the whooping cough vaccine was introduced in 2000.

Summary

Whooping cough causes severe attacks of coughing and is a very serious disease in babies.
If you think you or someone you know has whooping cough, go to a doctor early, antibiotics can stop the spread of this dangerous disease.
The best way to protect your baby from whooping cough is to get the proper immunisations.

More information

For more information about whooping cough, please contact your doctor, a public health nurse or the Health Protection Unit, telephone Hamilton (07) 838 2569.

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