Pertussis (Whooping Coughing)

Have your even been somewhere and a person coughs continuously, to the point where you glare at them and hope that they are covering their mouth,because whatever they got you do not want to catch. There is a good reason why you should be alarmedand acting like a hypochondriac.

There is an disturbing increase of Pertussis better known asWhooping Cough this season.Whooping cough is an infection of the lungs with a bacterium known as Bordetella pertussis. It can affect anyone at any age. It is highly contagious and on the rise. Pertussis are spread from person to person.

The symptoms include a cough that evolves over a 2 week period. It starts like an ordinary cold flu like symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, fever and mild cold. Pertussis worsens with periods of uncontrolled coughing. From 1 to 2 minutes this cough may last and often ends in vomiting. Thewhooping cough causes coughing that makes it hard for infants, to eat, drink, or breathe. It can lead to pneumonia seizures, brain damage and death.The whooping cough is caused by a bacteria that is found in the mouth, nose and throat of an infected person. It can spread through close contact when an infected person talks, sneezes or coughs.

The cough may last at least 2 to 3 weeks and can frequently go on three months or longer.Only 50% of whooping coughs suffer the noise of "whoop" and this is where the name comes from. When the person coughs and inhales again they make the sound "whoop." The crucial point forclinical diagnosis isattacks of severe cough separated by long intervals of no coughing at all. During a classic cough episode the signature "whoop" is heard as the patient struggles to breathe. Cough usually produces a thick, productive mucus. Vomiting may occur, lips and nails may turn blue due to lack of oxygen, patient is left very tired after the coughing spell.