Ritzville nurse offers info on whooping cough in Washington

You may have noticed increased media attention to pertussis (whooping cough) this past year.

There has been a recent push to educate the public on this disease since infection rates have been on the rise.

Last year there were 44 reported cases in Washington in infants alone, several of those in Adams County.

Pertussis can be well controlled by routine vaccinations, which have reduced the national infection rate by 98 percent since introduced in the 1940s. Historically the United States has outbreaks every 2-5 years and Washington’s rate is on the rise: 291 confirmed cases in 2009, jumping to 602 cases in 2010. In fact, this year there has already been 106 confirmed cases in Washington, compared to 52 cases this time last year. Grant County had one infant death last year from this disease.

Pertussis is a bacterial respiratory disease spread by close, prolonged contact with an infected person. Thus, it is often spread between family members living in the same household where coughs can be “shared.”

Infection is usually present a week before symptoms begin, which mimic the common cold: fever, running nose, and mild cough.

This cough gradually becomes more severe and can last as long as 12 weeks. It’s marked by violent coughing attacks that can cause vomiting and difficulty breathing.

These attacks create the signature “whooping” noise that pertussis is known for. Symptoms can be mild in teens and adults, many cases never being diagnosed.

It is possible to get pertussis despite being vaccinated, but the symptoms and cough are much milder in such cases. Pertussis can be treated with antibiotics.

Adult pertussis immunization is important for several reasons. First, infants under six months are most at risk for the disease and its complications, and are more likely to be hospitalized than adults.

They usually catch the disease from teen and adult family members or caregivers, and have no immunity at all until the first scheduled vaccination at two months of age. Also, since the last scheduled pertussis vaccine is given at age 4-6 years, and immunity lasts only 10-12 years, most teens and adults are no longer protected at all.

Therefore, the Washington State Department of Health as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend substituting one scheduled tetanus booster (Td: tetanus and diphtheria, given every 10 years) with a booster that also contains pertussis (Tdap: tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis).

This booster shot would therefore provide immunity to the teen/adult family member, as well as help protect vulnerable infants they care for.

Prenatal care is not all about mom and baby. Expectant mothers should talk to their health care provider about receiving the vaccine (usually given after delivery), but fathers and caregivers should also be part of the conversation.

Be an advocate for these infants that can’t protect themselves and talk to your healthcare provider about the Tdap vaccine. Pertussis immunizations can go a long way to protect the health of our infants.

RESOURCES

www.mayoclinic.com/health/whooping-cough/DS00445

http://www.cdc.gov/Features/Pertussis/

www.doh.wa.gov/Publicat/2010_news/10-142.htm

CITATIONS

www.doh.wa.gov/EHSPHL/Epidemiology/CD/pertupdate.pdf

www.doh.wa.gov/EHSPHL/Epidemiology/CD/pertsumm.pdf

www.cdc.gov/Features/Pertussis/

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0002528/

APIC Text of Infection Control and Epidemiology 2nd Ed. (2005). pgs.77-1 – 77-7. APIC: Washington DC.