The state is urging parents to get their children vaccinated against whooping cough after a rise in reported cases during the first three months of the year.
Whooping cough, a bacterial infection clinically called pertussis, tends to peak every 2-5 years, CDPH director Dr. Mark Horton said in a statement. The last resurgence was in 2005, when there were 3,182 reported cases, including 574 hospitalizations and seven deaths.
The health department says that most children get five doses of vaccine against pertussis before they reach kindergarten, but that doesn't make them immune from the disease for the rest of their lives. While babies are most susceptible, kids remain vulnerable into adulthood. A booster shot is recommended for adolescents age 11-18.
Since about half of infants who become infected with whooping cough get it from their parents, primarily their mothers, parents and caregivers are urged to get vaccinated, preferably before or right around birth.
Symptoms of whooping cough can resemble those of a cold: a cough and runny nose for a week or two. But with the disease, the cough persists and turns into severe, violent bouts of coughing (often producing the "whooping" sound). In very young children, it can lead to vomiting and dehydration, and in the worst cases pneumonia, seizures and brain damage.