...Understanding Whooping Cough

New Zealand is experiencing its first outbreak of whooping (pronounced ‘hoo-ping’) cough in six years, with 299 cases between January and July this year. That figure (which covers just seven months) is higher than the last three years combined. As such, the Foundation has gathered some helpful information about the illness to help better protect you and your whānau.

What is whooping cough?

It is an infection caused by a bacteria called Bordetella pertussis, which infects the lining of your nose, throat and breathing tubes. The cough can go on for weeks or months. A ‘whoop’ is the sound you sometimes make when you breathe in deeply after coughing. Whooping cough can be very serious in babies, young children and older adults.

What are the symptoms?

Whooping cough affects you differently depending on your age. Young babies may get very sick or even die.

In babies under 6 months of age; whooping cough is unpredictable and can get worse very quickly. Babies this young don't usually ‘whoop’, but they might:

• stop breathing

• go blue with bad coughing bouts

• seem to have a cold, then cough and have difficulty breathing

• get exhausted from coughing

• not be able to feed because of coughing

• lose weight because of trouble feeding and because the cough makes them vomit

In older babies and young children, the infection comes in three stages.

It starts like a cold (sore throat, runny nose, mild fever and sneezing), then after about one to two weeks an irritating cough begins and gets progressively worse.

The cough comes in bouts which can last up to 3 minutes and often gets worse with swallowing or eating.

In the final stage, symptoms begin to settle, but the cough can continue for weeks.

In older children and adults, a long-lasting, irritating cough will be the main symptom, however there is still a risk of severe illness.

How do you catch it?

Whooping cough is very easy to catch. It is passed from person to person by coughing and sneezing. On average, each person with whooping cough passes the infection on to 12 other people.

How is it treated?

Antibiotics may be prescribed during the early stages to reduce the spread of infection to other people. Antibiotics may also reduce symptoms of whooping cough but only if started very early, before the coughing starts.

No medicine will stop the cough once it has started. Your immune system will get rid of the bacteria after 3 or 4 weeks without any treatment, but the damage caused to your breathing tubes takes longer to repair. Cough medicine won't ease the coughing and isn't recommended for young children.

Mild cases of whooping cough can be treated at home. Make sure you and your child get as much rest as you can. The cough is often worse at night. Encourage children to have small healthy meals and plenty of fluids.

When to seek help?

See your healthcare practitioner if your child:

• is under the age of 1 year old and they have been in contact with someone who has whooping cough

• has long periods of coughing that end in vomiting

• has a daily cough that goes on longer than 2 weeks

• is under the age of 3 months old and has a cough

When to call 111:

If your baby:

• goes blue when coughing

• stops breathing

• has a seizure

• is becoming very sleepy and not easy to wake up

DID YOU KNOW?

Whooping cough outbreaks happen every 3-6 years in Aotearoa CASE REPORTS

2024: 299 cases reported in NZ between January and July

2023: 141 cases

2022: 18 cases

2021: 41 cases

How to prevent whooping cough?

Vaccination is the best way to protect against whooping cough. As many people as possible should be vaccinated to protect young babies. The best protection for babies is for their mother to be vaccinated during the second or third trimester of pregnancy and then for the baby to have their vaccinations on time.

When you're vaccinated during pregnancy, your body makes antibodies that pass through the placenta. It protects your baby from severe whooping cough for the first few months of life, until their first pertussis vaccine at 6 weeks. This is followed by two further injections at 3 months and 5 months. Two booster doses are then given at ages 4 years and 11 years. All these vaccinations are free.

It is recommended that close family contacts of pregnant women and young infants, such as other people in the household, grandparents and close relatives, are also immunised for whooping cough to reduce the spread of the disease.

Check with your local primary healthcare provider or community pharmacist about vaccination for whooping cough if you have a chronic respiratory condition or are immunocompromised.