Most of us remember giving our kids the Pertussis (Whooping Cough) vaccine with little thought to our own susceptibility. But right now California is facing a whooping cough epidemic and its hitting seniors pretty hard. It could happen anywhere.
Pertussis is a highly contagious bacterial disease that causes uncontrollable, violent coughing. The coughing can make it hard to breathe and the deep "whooping" sound is often heard when the patient tries to take a breath. If someone with whooping cough sneezes or coughs, tiny droplets which hold the bacteria spread through the air. Once the infection takes hold, its tenacious usually lasting at least six weeks.
The first symptoms are similar to the common cold, but about 10 to 12 weeks after exposure to the bacteria severe episodes of coughing start. These coughing spells can lead to vomiting or a short loss of consciousness. Pertussis should always be considered when vomiting occurs with coughing.
If you suspect you have whooping cough, go to your doctor and ask him to test for it. Your physician will take a sample from your nasal secretions and send it to the lab. Because the test takes a while, if your MD suspects whooping cough, treatment will be started immediately.
If started early enough, antibiotics like erythromycin will reduce or eliminate the symptoms within a short period of time. The big problem is that most patients are diagnosed too late, when antibiotics aren't very effective. Even so, the medicines can help reduce the patient's ability to spread the disease to others. Forget about cough mixtures: neither expectorants nor suppressants are effective and physicians recommend that you do not use them.
To prevent catching pertussis, speak to your doctor right now about getting a vaccine. Its highly effective and can prevent pretty serious complications.
Robin Westen writes about health for national magazines.
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