Are You At Risk For Whooping Cough?

For the second year in a row, parents are being warned about a disease with an odd name but potentially dangerous effects. Last year, Toronto Public Health issued a warning about the return of pertussis – otherwise known as whooping cough. The ailment has made a disturbing comeback over the last few years, and while it’s treatable, it’s not something you want your family to go through.

Lisa Snider found out the hard way just how miserable a tangle with pertussis can be.  “Last year I had whooping cough, and it was probably about a three- or four-month-long battle of coughing and tightness in the chest,” she remembers. “The cough was extremely painful, and to me at times it felt like I was getting strangled.”

The problem: while a vaccine for whooping cough has long been available, the shots most adults got as children are no longer as effective. For many, that should mean considering a booster. And since kids usually get the ailment from adults, it’s a precaution that helps more than just your body.

Snider decided to get jabbed to protect herself and her family. “I’m glad that I got it so I don’t have to worry about ever getting whooping cough again.” Still, don’t expect to just receive it. The pertussis booster shot isn’t routinely given to adults. So you should talk to your doctor about whether you need it or not.

According to Health Canada, whooping cough is the most frequently reported, vaccine-preventable disease in the country. Here’s a look:

What Causes Whooping Cough?

The ailment is caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis, which infects the respiratory tract. It’s a highly contagious bug that’s spread through droplets of water in the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It starts with the symptoms of a cold, but soon progresses into terrible coughing fits that can last from six to 12 weeks. And it be very serious for youngsters.

When an infant comes down with the illness it can lead to vomiting after coughing spats, weight loss, breathing problems, convulsions, brain damage, choking spells, pneumonia, and in some rare cases, even death.

The disease doesn’t pose as serious a risk to older children and adults, but it can still make them miserable. In some cases, coughing can be so severe it causes a broken rib or even a hernia.

What Are The Symptoms?

In many cases, the symptoms are virtually identical to those of the common cold – like watery eyes, a runny nose and a cough. Ignore them and you can easily spread the disease to other people in the home.

Sometimes, after a severe coughing fit, a child may make a ‘whoop’ sound as they try to take in air, but this symptom doesn’t always occur.

It’s sometimes hard for them to diagnose the ailment because it can seem like so many other things. After a week of feeling generally under the weather, the coughing fits can begin, accompanied by thick phlegm. Vomiting may follow, and you’ll be left feeling exhausted by what it does to your body.

The ailment is especially tough to detect in adults, because it mimics bronchitis. Other signs are coughing spells that last so long, they cause blood vessels in your upper body to rupture and your eyes to appear bloodshot.

The effects can linger – even after you get the necessary drugs to fight the infection, you may still have a cough that lingers for weeks or even months, and could return if you catch an actual cold.

How Is It Spread?

Toronto Public Health says it’s transmitted by infected persons when they cough or sneeze and they can spread the disease from the time they get it until three weeks after the coughing attacks start.

See your health care provider if anyone in your household has a cough that lasts longer than a week. It’s important to get an accurate diagnosis, and to make sure that anyone with whooping cough gets treatment and avoids close contact with young children while the disease is still contagious.

Even if your child has had whooping cough, continue with the complete series of shots. You can get whooping cough more than once, and immunization is the best way to protect children from serious complications if they become infected again. The shots are usually free.

For more information on whooping cough, click here and here.

And for details on attending a talk featuring Dr. Linda Yolles, click here.