Washtenaw County Health Department: Watch out for whooping cough
It might start with what seems like a common cold.
But whooping cough can soon develop into a illness with fits of uncontrollable coughing that persist for weeks.
And the spread of the highly contagious bacterial infection is showing no signs of slowing in Washtenaw County - particularly in Saline, despite schools being out for summer break.
"There is just a ton of pertussis this year," said county Epidemiologist Laura Bauman. "So far, we have had over 60 cases for 2010. Some weeks, we've heard of almost one a day."
Whooping cough remains at high levels in Washtenaw County.
And it's not just affecting young children. It's also hitting teens and adults hard, Bauman said.
Whooping cough is particularly dangerous to infants, but some of the most severe cases this year have been reported among people in their 40s, Bauman said.
According to the Washtenaw County Department of Public Health, symptoms often include low grade fever, runny nose and a cough that becomes more severe after one or two weeks and lasts more than a month.
"During coughing attacks, the lips and nails may turn blue for lack of air. Vomiting can occur with severe episodes. In between coughing episodes, people may feel and appear fairly healthy. Some report that coughing is worse at night," according to the department.
But adults can even break ribs or pass out from the coughing in some cases, and infants younger than 1 year old can experience complications such as pneumonia, convulsions - and rarely, brain damage.
• Hear what it sounds like when someone has whooping cough.
Whooping cough has been a growing national concern in recent years because of the rising number of cases, particularly among teens. In 2008, more than 13,000 cases were reported with 18 deaths across the U.S., according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In California, a whooping cough epidemic was declared, and the state recorded about 1,500 cases through July 13, which is "a fivefold increase" over the same period last year, CBS New reported. Six infants have died.
Experts aren't sure exactly why such a climb in whooping cough cases has occurred in recent years.
It may be due in part to vaccination gaps, as many parents choose not to vaccinate their children or don't get their Tdap vaccine boosters, Bauman said.
Public health officials have been trying to get the word out about the importance of vaccination, especially in households with infants. And this year is the first year Michigan schools will require all incoming sixth grade students get the Tdap vaccine, the immunization for whooping cough.
Cases may also be up due to the the quality of the vaccine.
"Something I had not fully appreciated before is that the pertussis vaccine is a good vaccine, but it's not a great vaccine," Bauman said.
Up to 20 percent of people who get the vaccine could still get the illness, but that shouldn't discourage people from trying to get what protection they can from the vaccine.
• Take a quiz on whooping cough facts to see how much you know.
Improved testing methods are likely detecting more cases than might have been detected before. That improvement in testing should push those who suspect they have whooping cough to head into the doctor's office sooner so it can be recognized and treated.
Whooping cough is a bacterial infection, so it can be treated with antibiotics to moderate symptoms and reduce the contagious nature of the illness, she said.
Tina Reed covers health and the environment for AnnArbor.com. You can reach her at tinareed@annarbor.com, call her at 734-623-2535 or find her on Twitter @TreedinAA.
Comments
Rod Johnson
Sun, Aug 8, 2010 : 12:31 p.m.
mhirzel: thanks.
Ricebrnr
Thu, Aug 5, 2010 : 11:30 a.m.
OY!!!!! pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/vaccines/view/
krc
Tue, Aug 3, 2010 : 8:33 a.m.
Is there any proof to the TV ad that is now urging parents and caregivers to get the vaccine? Can we really be carriers of this awful illness? I'm a gramma, and I watch my 10 month old grandson. Technojunkie: I'm with you! Vaccines should be spread out, not given all at once. I am a believer that autism is closely related to vaccines, and wonder if it because our poor babies are slammed with such a huge cocktail of them.
Matthew R.
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 9:09 p.m.
I'm surprised to see anyone cite Wakefield, given that he's been thoroughly repudiated by the scientific community. His big article in the Lancet was retracted, after all. You can read an interesting summary of his work here: http://tallguywrites.livejournal.com/148012.html
Lizzeh
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 4:02 p.m.
I always wondered what the evolved viruses and bacteria look like after they mutate to fight off the vaccines.
Rod Johnson
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 2:23 p.m.
mhirzel: citations please? I've seen so many flame wars over vaccination--it's great to see this discussion remaining civil!
Ricebrnr
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 1:11 p.m.
Jason if you are indeed making the best decision with the best information you have available to you from expert sources then I highly recommend that you and parents like you watch the Frontline Special, The Vaccine War pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/vaccines/view/
spm
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 12:56 p.m.
I got this a few years ago. It lasted from early December to late February. I broke a rib in February and after that it was so painful to cough I could hardly stand it. My doctor gave me an inhaler to try and help stem the cough, but it didn't do a thing. My ribs didn't heal completely for another 6 to 8 months. If you have kids, make sure you get them vaccinated. You do not want them to go through this.
JadziaDax
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 11:46 a.m.
The pertussis vaccine DOES NOT prevent carriage or transmission. It is meant to reduce the severity of the toxicity of the bacteria in the body. So a vaccinated individual can still contract and spread pertussis, and likely not even know they have it due to being asymptomatic. http://insidevaccines.com/wordpress/vaccine-efficacy-how-often-do-vaccines-work/dtap/pertussis-vaccine-and-transmission/ "Pertussis is considered an endemic disease, characterized by an epidemic every 25 years. This rate of exacerbations has not changed, even after the introduction of mass vaccination a fact that indicates the efficacy of the vaccine in preventing the disease but not the transmission of the causative agent (B. pertussis) within the population [19]."
cmotdibbler
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 10:52 a.m.
I think parents who decline this vaccination should have to watch some video footage of an appropriate aged child suffering from this disease. Somehow I contracted WC this spring, it can start as mild cold but the dry coughing can last for months. My ribs are now damaged so that it "only" hurts when I move or breath. You DO NOT WANT pertussis.
Technojunkie
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 10:32 a.m.
If you listen to Dr. Andrew Wakefield and other such researchers they advocate spreading out the vaccination schedule rather than pummeling developing immune systems with multiple vaccines at once. Make sure that the child isn't sick when receiving vaccinations too. You still need to get those vaccines. Dr. Wakefield ran afoul of Britain's NHS when he advocated using single vaccines over an outright defective MMR vaccine produced by a British company. NHS removed the single vaccine option shortly thereafter, which is easy to do with nationalized health care, and the situation degenerated from there. Unfortunately this advice was mangled by critics and journalists into "vaccines cause autism!" and here we are. Search wakefield mercola on Youtube for a really fascinating interview.
jcj
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 9:50 a.m.
"What would happen if the experts said. "yea maybe this vaccine is bad for your kids." How do you distinguish when to listen to the experts? Why would you listen to the experts IF they said it is bad for your kids but not listen to them when the experts say get them inoculated? I sincerely hope you are one of the fortunate ones that does not experience this with your kids.
Elaine F. Owsley
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 9:03 a.m.
Well, Jason, they haven't said that, have they? Your only hope is that your children won't be exposed to a danger you chose not to protect them from. Good luck.
Jason
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 8:33 a.m.
I feel no shame for trying to make the best decision for my kids. What would happen if the experts said. "yea maybe this vaccine is bad for your kids." The fallout would be devestating.
Elaine F. Owsley
Sat, Jul 31, 2010 : 7:16 a.m.
As someone who had whooping cough before there was a vaccine, I can only say to parents who failed to have their children vaccinated, "Shame on you!!" This is the scariest childhood disease imaginable and for adults as well. Think of the worse kind of asthma attack coupled with the worse kind of cough. These diseases languished BECAUSE OF VACCINE USE. Now parents are letting them rise because of mistaken ideas about inoculations.