Three suspected whooping cough cases were reported in Saline today and public health officials warn there have been a higher-than-normal number of cases spreading locally.

So far this year, there have been 30 suspected cases reported in Washtenaw County. That's up from 20 cases for all of 2008, said Laura Bauman, epidemiologist at the county public health department.

The cases reported today involved children who were part of the same family, she said. No additional information was available as the cases were investigated.

"It is clear whooping cough is alive and well in Washtenaw County," Bauman said.

What's going on in the county mirrors an increase in whooping cough cases nationally and in Michigan, said Joel Blostein, a vaccine preventable disease epidemiologist for the state. In the first half of the year, there were 281 reported cases of whooping cough. In 2008, there were 315 total reported cases.

Whooping cough, officially named pertussis, has symptoms that include a persistent cough and sudden coughing spells that are so forceful, a person feels he or she might vomit. In children, it can often include a whooping sound when breathing in, Bauman said.

It carries a number of complications and can be particularly dangerous to toddlers, children and seniors and can lead to hospitalization.

There are a number of reasons the number of cases is up this year, including an upsurge that seems to occur every three to five years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Whooping cough is a vaccine-preventable disease. But in some of the cases reported in Dexter earlier this year, some of the 11-year-old kids who became ill were just younger than the recommended age to receive booster shots to strengthen their vaccine immunity, Bauman said.

Residents need to make sure their vaccinations and their children's vaccinations are up to date, she said. "The bottom line is people who decide not to vaccinate are depending on everyone else's vaccine."

Adults who coughs that linger for more than a week or two should get checked for whooping cough so they can be treated and avoid passing the illness onto someone more vulnerable, Bauman said.