Whooping Cough

Whooping Cough, also known as pertussis, common name applied to an acute, infectious disease of the respiratory tract, caused by the bacillus Bordetella pertussis. The disease is characterized in its late stages by a deep cough ending in a peculiar high-pitched whooping sound. Whooping cough occurs worldwide, periodically in epidemics. Most cases occur in children under five years of age, and the disease is most serious in children less than one year old. In the United States about 7,800 cases occur each year.

Infection with pertussis usually occurs by inhaling droplets sprayed into the air during coughing or sneezing spells by an infected person. Once inside the respiratory tract, pertussis bacteria produce toxins (poisonous chemicals) that interfere with the respiratory tract’s ability to eliminate microbial infections. Pertussis bacteria also produce chemicals that cause inflammation of the lining of the respiratory tract.

The disease begins with a runny nose, a harsh cough, and a slight fever. The characteristic whoop develops one to two weeks later. Coughing spells, which usually occur at night and often end in vomiting, can continue to occur for four weeks or more. Complications of pertussis may include pneumonia and seizures.

Physicians treat whooping cough with antibiotics. Other treatments include controlling coughing with sedatives and replacing fluids lost by vomiting. Use of pertussis vaccine during the first year of life provides immunity to the infection in most children. Pertussis vaccine is usually given together with diphtheria and tetanus vaccines in a shot called DTaP. In the United States, most states require children entering day care or school to be immunized against pertussis. As a result of this extensive immunization, mortality from pertussis in the United States is five cases per year.