Health Service issues whooping cough warning
The North Coast Area Health Service last week issued a health alert, warning people, especially parents, to be on the look-out for the symptoms of whooping cough following a worrying increase in cases across the NSW North Coast.
Director of the North Coast Public Health, Paul Corben, said whooping cough can be unpleasant for people of any age, but it can prove to be very serious in babies, even fatal.
“With 60 cases reported in the first two months of this year, we have received over two-and-a-half times the average number of cases reported in the same period over the previous five years,” he said.
“We are already well on the way to exceeding the 129 cases reported for all of 2007.”
Mr Corben said whooping cough is highly infectious and easily spread from an infected person to others by droplets during coughing.
“Someone with whooping cough will be able to spread it to others for up to three weeks after commencement of their illness unless they are treated with appropriate antibiotics,” he said.
“So it is very important that people are treated early to stop the spread of the disease.
“All age groups have been affected, but particularly children under 10 years of age. In some cases whole families including parents have been infected.”
Mr Corben said all children under 6 months of age and anyone who has not received three doses of whooping cough vaccine will not have been fully vaccinated and so remain very vulnerable to whooping cough.
“If you have a small child or baby in your family, make sure you don’t let anyone with a coughing illness get too close to the child. The best way to protect babies is to keep them away from anyone with a cough and to make sure their immunisations are up to date,” he said.
A booster vaccine is commercially available for adults from GPs.
People who have contact with small children, such as parents or grandparents, or people working with small children including health care and childcare workers are advised to receive this vaccine.
Unfortunately, immunity following vaccination or disease is not life-long, so older children and adults, as well as those who have never received any vaccines, are susceptible to the infection and reinfection.
“Whooping cough usually begins just like an ordinary cold with a runny nose, tiredness and sometimes a mild fever,” said Mr Corben.
“Coughing bouts then develop with attacks followed by a big deep gasp that sometimes produces a whooping sound.
Vomiting may follow these bouts of coughing. Adults often just have a cough without the whoop.
“Untreated, these coughing bouts may last for 3 months or more.”
To help prevent serious illness parents are urged to ensure that young babies and children are fully vaccinated. Pertussis vaccinations are administered at 2, 4 and 6 months with a booster at 4 years. An additional pertussis/diphtheria/tetanus vaccine is available for teenagers free of charge at the age of 15 years.
Information about whooping cough and whooping cough vaccination can be obtained from the North Coast Public Health Unit offices on 6620 7500.
A fact sheet on whooping cough can be found at the NSW Health website at
www.health.nsw.gov.au/factsheets/infectious/pertussis.html
