That Whooping cough

A severe hacking cough, generally accompanied by a high-pitched intake of breath that sounds like a whoop or rasping noise, is the most common tell-tale sign of pertussis or whooping cough — an infection of the respiratory system.

The condition, said Dr Anona Griffith, paediatrician at Gateway Plaza, Old Harbour, is a very contagious infection of the respiratory tract caused by the bacterium bordetella pertussis.

“Whooping cough is transmitted to susceptible people who are in the same breathing space as an infected individual. And while it can affect any age group, it is often worse or can become fatal in small children and babies,” Dr Griffith said.

Whooping cough, which has an infection period of up to two weeks after the coughing starts, is most common in babies and children, since those younger than six months old are fragile and are sometimes without the protection of immunisation. In addition, it can occur in children within the 11 to 18 year groups for whom the effects of the vaccines would have started to fade.

Dr Griffith noted that other symptoms of whooping cough include:

•Slight or low-grade fever

•Runny nose

•A cough, usually mild

• In small babies, pauses in breathing — otherwise known as apnoea — is another tell-tale sign of whooping cough, which can become fatal if not addressed.

Prevention from whooping cough can now start as early as during pregnancy.

“The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) now recommends that pregnant women receive the pertussis vaccine in the early part of their third trimester of pregnancy, regardless of previous immunisation. This protection is passed on to the baby after two weeks of the mother being immunised,” Dr Griffith explained.

She said that antibodies which offer protection against whooping cough are also passed on naturally during the breastfeeding process. But she pointed out that a child’s best chance of building resistance against the condition is through personal immunisation.

“Immunisation during childhood is the main means of prevention and protection. There are different preparations, depending on the age of the patient. DPT and DTaP are the preparations given to children up to age seven, while Tdap is given to older children and adults,” Dr Griffith shared.

It is recommended that doses be administered as part of the primary series of vaccines in the first six months of life, with boosters given at 18 months and four to six years.

But even when these steps are followed, Dr Griffith said that it is always best to avoid contact between individuals who are coughing and newborns and infants who are not immunised. This way, she said, the possibility of your child becoming infected with the bacterium will be significantly reduced.

— Penda Honeyghan