Since the beginning of this year, the number of instances of whooping cough has increased at a rate that is the quickest it has been recorded in almost a decade. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were an overall number of 291 cases recorded during the week that ended on September 14. New York recorded 44 infections, making it the state with the highest number of cases reported this week. Additionally, the states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma have each recorded a minimum of 38 cases. Additionally, the number of instances exceeds more than 10,000, which is incredibly a lot considering the cases that had been recorded back in 2019 prior to the implementation of COVID-19 pandemic measures. That resulted in a steep decline in the number of instances of pertussis and other viruses that are transmitted through the air.
People normally begin to experience symptoms of whooping cough disease approximately one week after they have been exposed to another person who is contagious. This disease is triggered by the pertussis bacteria. The symptoms can last anywhere from a few weeks to many months, and they generally include the iconic “whooping” that occurs when individuals have trouble breathing after being confronted with a series of coughs.
A number of pertussis vaccinations are currently recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for both children and adults. These vaccinations include booster shots of the Tdap vaccine, which contains antigens that are supposed to protect against pertussis, for all adults every ten years. The current generation of vaccines for “acellular pertussis” continues to be considered to “provide a significant public health benefit by preventing disease,” according to briefing documents that were published before the meeting by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The data from the CDC survey from 2022 reveals that approximately 39% of individuals have received a booster shot for pertussis in the past ten years.
