Whooping Cough Pertussis – California – California has reported an outbreak of Whooping Cough, with more than 4,000 confirmed cases of the issue being reported so far. There have also been as many as nine deaths that are believed to be related to the Whooping Cough outbreak.
The last time that so many cases were reported was way back in 1955. Whooping Cough has been kept under wraps for the last few years as more effective treatments have been developed. In 1962, the condition reached a level of 10.9 cases per 100,000 people in the state, making it an official epidemic in the region.
Of the nine deaths, 8 of them were Hispanic children. 8 were infants that were less than two months old when they first showed signs of the disease, and none of those infants received a dose of the vaccine to help them deal with it.
One death was a 28 week old premature baby who was two months old when it developed the disease. Health authorities have informed the public that babies who have whooping cough should see a doctor immediately. The majority of the cases will be in infants under the age of 2 months.
Now the question becomes how the state will deal with the outbreak. It is clear that they were not expecting this to happen, but how should they deal with it? Parents have been encouraged to get their children a vaccine that protects the children against whooping cough.