Whooping cough claims 9 lives in California

Los Angeles State health officials have announced that California is on its way to break the 55-year-old record in whooping cough infections.

Till now, 4,017 cases of this extremely infectious disease have been reported in California. National data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows 11,466 cases reported throughout the country.

The number of infected patients is rising, and health authorities are requiring everybody to have booster shots.

The epidemic has already claimed the lives of nine infants. All these babies were too young to be fully immunized against the illness.

In South Carolina, officials reported one whooping cough death and 255 confirmed or suspected cases.

Parents, caregivers urged to get shots
Typically, babies are given a series of vaccinations, and then they receive booster shots between ages four and six, and again after age 10.

This year, health officials are asking everyone over six months of age to get a flu vaccine, expanding previous guidelines that targeted only vulnerable populations.

Myths regarding the vaccination
Many parents miss vaccines for their children because of apprehensions about autism, which are fueled by misinformation. The vaccines against whooping cough are free of the additive thimerosal, a preservative containing mercury that is being debated as a possible cause of autism.

It has been found that 127 out of the 7,174 schools in California reported 50 percent or lesser rate of immunization against whooping cough among kindergarten students in 2009.

What is whooping cough
Whooping cough or pertussis is an infection of the respiratory system caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. It is typified by severe coughing spells that end in a "whooping" sound when the person breathes in.

It mainly affects infants younger than six months before they are effectively protected by vaccinations, and 11- to 18-year-old kids whose immunity has faded.

Pertussis killed 5,000 to 10,000 people in the United States each year before the vaccine that has reduced the number of deaths to 30 per year now.

But in recent years, the numbers have started to rise again. In 2004, the number of whooping cough cases crossed 25,000, the highest level since the 1950s.

Signs and symptoms
The first symptoms of whooping cough are similar to those of a common cold: runny nose, sneezing, mild cough, and low-grade fever.

After about 1 to 2 weeks, the dry, irritating cough evolves into coughing spells. At the end of a spell, the patient makes a whooping sound when breathing in. However, sometimes infants don't cough or whoop as older kids do. They may look as if they're gasping for air, with a reddened face, and may actually stop breathing for a few seconds during particularly bad spells.

Adults and adolescents with whooping cough may have milder or uncommon symptoms, such as a prolonged cough without the coughing spells or the whoop.