Carson City health officials issue reminder over Whooping Cough jabs
CARSON CITY — An outbreak of Whooping Cough that recently took the lives of two California infants, both under the age of three months, should serve as a call to action, Carson City health officials said.
An alarming 219 cases of pertussis have been recorded in California so far this year, up dramatically from 118 cases during the same time frame last year.
"Love them. Protect them. Immunize them" is the slogan for National Infant Immunization Week, today through May 1 and it serves as a reminder for immunization jabs to stop the spread of the disease, according to Carson City Health and Human Services.
Whooping Cough is a highly contagious disease that can be deadly in infants, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. It is one of the diseases protected against by the whooping cough immunization (DTaP) given to infants beginning at 2 months. DTaP, which also protects against diphtheria and tetanus, is given to infants at 2 months, 4 months and again at 6 months. Older children also have a DTaP schedule because this vaccination loses its ability to protect after 5 to 10 years.
An infant requires all three of the vaccinations to be protected. For that reason, public health officials urge all soon-to-be parents to get whooping cough vaccinations. This method of immunizing one group to protect another is known as “cocooning.”
“Under 6 months of age, the infant is vulnerable to severe disease,” said Dr. Susan Pintar, Carson City Health Officer and Pediatrician, “and before 2 months, they have no immunity at all.”
Pertussis rarely kills adults; they typically suffer from about 90 days of cold symptoms and may have severe coughing episodes. When those adults are around infants and children, they can readily spread pertussis.
The Carson City Health Department recommends that mothers and fathers of newborn infants receive a whooping cough vaccination. Some hospitals routinely administer whooping cough vaccinations to new parents.