Michigan faces a new challenge in protecting public health with a distinct
increase in the number of cases of whooping cough.
The Department of Community Health (MDCH) has released that 99 cases have
been reported as of the end of last month. Compared to the 63 cases
reported in the same period in 2003, this year's number of cases shows a
57 percent increase. Cases have occurred in all age groups ranging from
newborns to adults.
MDCH Director Janet Olszewski said the rise in cases demonstrates the
importance of inoculating children against whooping cough.
“Now, more than ever, it is vitally important to ensure that children
under the age of 7 are routinely vaccinated for this disease,” she said.
MDCH released that adolescents and adults with unrecognized, undiagnosed
whooping cough can often infect children with the disease. Therefore, the
organization advocates that children receive shots to protect them against
infected adults.
Michigan is not alone in the increase in cases. Other states in the region
including Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, North Dakota, and New York
have seen a growing number of incidents. This general trend of increase
has been observed over the past 10 to 15 years. In 2003, more than 11,000
cases were reported in the U.S. - the highest number since 1964. The cause
of this increase is at this point unknown to experts. However, it has been
noted that the number of reported cases is currently much lower than it
was before the vaccine existed, when the reported incidents were in the
hundreds of thousands.
Olszewski added that two problems with disease treatment are that
inoculations wear off after five to 10 years and no licensed vaccine
exists for people over age seven. Booster shots are currently being
tested, but are not yet available in the United States.
Whooping cough, sometimes referred to by its more scientific name,
pertussis, is a bacterial disease that infects the respiratory system.
While the initial symptoms are similar to those of a common cold, after a
couple weeks, coughs begin to bring up thick, stringy mucus. Coughing then
occurs in long spells that may last over one minute, sometimes causing an
individual to turn red from the effort or blue from the lack of oxygen.
The coughing spells often cumulate in a gasp for air with the
characteristic whooping sound.
