Two students at a local elementary were diagnosed with whooping cough, also called pertussis, a respiratory illness that is highly contagious, County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) officials said.
The two 8-year-olds were current with vaccinations and attend La Costa Meadows Elementary School in the San Marcos Unified School District. Students and staff were notified of the potential exposure to whooping cough so they could watch for symptoms. A typical case of pertussis starts with a cough and runny nose for one to two weeks, followed by weeks to months of rapid coughing fits that sometimes end with a whooping sound. Fever, if present, is usually mild. The disease is treatable with antibiotics.
“Everyone is thankful for good health, and pertussis vaccines help protect families against the disease,” said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County Public Health Officer. “Everyone can be grateful for the availability of the pertussis vaccine. Before pertussis vaccine distribution, whooping cough killed between 5,000 and 10,000 people a year in the United States.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that children get the DTaP vaccine series at the following ages: 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 15 to 18 months, and 4 to 6 years. The Tdap booster shot is recommended for preteens and adults, including pregnant women. The ultimate goal is to prevent death that can result as a complication of pertussis. Infants under one year old are especially vulnerable and can develop life-threatening complications.
Parents with children who had close exposure to someone with whooping cough should contact their primary care physician. The vaccine series and the Tdap booster shot are available through most healthcare providers. Local retail pharmacies also offer vaccinations for a fee, and anyone without medical insurance can get the shots from a County Public Health Center at no cost.
The two cases bring the total number of cases to 126 in the region to date this year. In 2011, 400 pertussis cases were reported locally.
For more information about whooping cough and ongoing vaccination clinics, call the HHSA Immunization Branch at (866) 358-2966, or visit www.sdiz.org.
