School chaos fears as kids suspected of having whooping cough should be ... trends now
What is whooping cough?
Whooping cough is a serious and highly contagious respiratory disease that infects the lungs and breathing tubes.
Also called pertussis, it's caused by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis. After or between bouts of coughing, patients may gasp for air and produce the characteristic 'whoop' noise.
The disease is also sometimes called the '100-day cough' as it can last for 6–12 weeks.
It is most serious in babies under six months as it can cause breathing difficulties, dehydration, pneumonia and seizures.
It is generally less severe in older children and adults.
What are the symptoms?
Typically, the first signs of whooping cough are similar to a cold, such as a runny nose and sore throat, though a high temperature is uncommon.
After about a week, coughing bouts will start that last for a few minutes and are worse at night.
Many infants and younger children with whooping cough have the coughing fits and accompanying whoop, but not all do.
And sometimes babies don't cough or whoop as older kids do but may show signs of difficulties breathing.
The infection is generally milder in teenagers and adults than in babies and children, especially those who have been vaccinated.
How does it spread?
Whooping cough is very contagious and can be spread through tiny drops of fluid from an infected person's nose or mouth.
It can be spread when an infected person sneezes, coughs, or laughs. Others can catch it by inhaling the drops or getting the bacteria on their hands and then touching their mouths or noses.
Symptoms usually appear about 7 to 10 days after exposure symptoms can appear up to 21 days after a person is infected.
People are most contagious at the earliest stages and for up to about two weeks after the cough begins.
Why are cases rising?
More than 2,700 whooping cough cases have been reported across the country so far in 2024, with 1,319 cases reported in March alone, according to the UKHSA.
This compares to 858 cases throughout the entirety of 2023.
Cases of whooping cough peak every four or so years but the pandemic saw a dramatic fall in the incidence of whooping cough and other respiratory infections as a result of reduced mixing of people.
Professor Andrew Preston from the University of Bath’s Milner Centre for Evolution, said cases have been rising since the end of restrictions and a peak year had been expected to arise soon.
Vaccination rates in infants have declined compared to pre-pandemic levels, down from over 96 per
