Whooping cough

Whooping cough – known medically as pertussis – is a highly contagious respiratory tract infection. Although it initially resembles an ordinary cold, whooping cough may eventually turn more serious, particularly in infants. In the more advanced stages, it's marked by the symptom that gives the disease its name: a severe, hacking cough followed by a high-pitched intake of breath that sounds like "whoop."

Whooping cough is more serious in children, especially infants younger than 6 months of age.

Once you become infected with the bacterium that causes whooping cough, it takes a few days to a few weeks for signs and symptoms to appear. When they do, they're usually mild at first and resemble those of a common cold, such as: a runny nose, nasal congestion, sneezing, red, watery eyes, a mild fever, dry cough, general feeling of being unwell and loss of appetite, after a week or two, signs and symptoms become worse and usually include: severe coughing attacks that bring up thick phlegm.

Coughing attacks that end with a high-pitched whoop sound as you gasp for air. These may be so severe that your child vomits or turns red or blue from the effort.

Fatigue from coughing so much. In adults, signs and symptoms of whooping cough may resemble those of bronchitis, a respiratory infection that causes a nagging cough – you may have heard it referred to as the "100-day cough." Babies and infants with whooping cough may not whoop at all, or at least not as loudly as older children do. Some children with whooping cough may experience choking spells and turn blue in the face as they struggle to breathe after a coughing fit.

Severe coughing can result in tiny red spots caused by ruptures in blood vessels at the skin's surface (petechiae) in your upper body, as well as small areas of bleeding in the whites of your eyes. You may even bruise or break a rib if your coughing episodes are severe. Coughing may be worse at night.

Even after treatment to destroy the bacteria, your body continues to repair the damage to the lining of your trachea. As a result, the cough often lingers after the initial illness. With time, coughing usually lessens but can persist for six weeks or longer. Some people may even experience recurring episodes of coughing over the course of a year, especially when they contract a cold or other respiratory infection.

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Treatment for whooping cough

Treatment for whooping cough varies, depending on your age and the severity of signs and symptoms.

When whooping cough is diagnosed early in older children, teenagers and adults, doctors usually prescribe bed rest along with an antibiotic such as azithromycin or erythromycin. Although antibiotics won't cure whooping cough, they can shorten the duration of the illness and they shorten the period of communicability. If there is a confirmed diagnosis but a slow response to antibiotic therapy, it may be necessary to take the antibiotic for at least two weeks and maybe longer.

If the illness has progressed to the point of severe coughing spells, antibiotics aren't as effective but may still be used. Unfortunately, not much is available in the way of symptom relief. Over-the-counter cough medicines, for instance, have little effect on whooping cough. A case of whooping cough usually resolves in six weeks but may last longer.

Almost all infants with whooping cough who are younger than 2 months, as well as many older babies, are admitted to the hospital to help decrease the risk of serious complications of the disease. Most babies treated for whooping cough overcome the condition without lasting effects, but the risk exists until the infection clears.

In the hospital, your child is likely to receive intravenous antibiotics to treat the infection and perhaps corticosteroid drugs, which help reduce lung inflammation. Sometimes a child's airway may also be suctioned to remove mucus that's blocking it. Your child's breathing will be carefully monitored in case extra oxygen is needed.

If your child can't keep down liquids or food, intravenous fluids may be necessary. In some cases, prescription sedatives will help your child rest. Your child will also be isolated from others to prevent the infection from spreading.