Suffolk Health Officials Tracking Whooping Cough Outbreak

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — The Suffolk County Department of Health Services is tracking a growing number of pertussis cases, with the vast majority of the 108 cases being school-aged children who attend school throughout the region, as well as their parents, Health Commissioner Dr. Gregson Pigott said Saturday.

Most of the people who have contracted the infection are vaccinated, so their symptoms are milder than would be expected in the unvaccinated, he said.

County officials are not aware of any hospitalizations from the outbreak, according to Pigott.
Pertussis, which is otherwise known as whooping cough, is a respiratory tract infection caused by Bordetella pertussis bacteria and is highly contagious, spreading through the air when infected people cough or sneeze.

Pigott said that with so many respiratory illnesses currently circulating, some for which there are no treatments, the department wanted to make sure parents know that the ailment can be treated with antibiotics if diagnosed early.

"Whooping cough can be very serious for infants too young to be vaccinated, which is why we are alerting both medical providers and the public that this illness is circulating," he said.

The most common symptoms are cough, nasal congestion, and fever, but the cough can worsen and last several weeks, officials said.

Infants, especially unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated, are the most likely to have severe disease or have complications such as pauses in breathing, pneumonia, convulsions, disease affecting the brain, or death, according to officials.

Most people recover slowly with antibiotics, however, the best method to prevent or lessen the severity of the disease is through vaccination, so routine vaccination against pertussis is recommended for all children and adults, officials said.

The DTaP vaccine for children and TDaP vaccine for adults protect against pertussis, as well as two other serious infections, tetanus, and diphtheria, according to officials.

TDaP vaccination is also recommended for pregnant women during every pregnancy to protect their babies from whooping cough in the first few months of life, officials said.

Anyone who has symptoms consistent with pertussis should stay home and contact a healthcare provider for evaluation and testing, according to officials.

Early treatment with antibiotics is important for reducing the severity of symptoms, especially in infants, officials said.

People diagnosed with pertussis should stay home from work or school until they have completed five days of antibiotic treatment to avoid spreading pertussis to others, according to officials.

Certain people should receive preventive antibiotics if they have been in contact with someone who is ill with pertussis, to help prevent them from getting sick, officials said. They include those at risk for severe illness, including people with weakened immune systems, infants, and women in their third trimester of pregnancy, according to officials.

People who live with someone diagnosed with pertussis should also receive preventive antibiotics, officials said.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends good hygiene to prevent the spread of respiratory illnesses, and offers these tips:

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
• Put used tissue in the waste basket.
• Cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve or elbow, not your hands, if you don’t have a tissue.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
• Use an alcohol-based hand rub if soap and water are not available.