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Louisiana on track for record whooping cough cases
Whooping cough is spreading faster in Louisiana than it has in more than a decade, and health officials warn that this year could set a record for cases.
Why it matters: Adults need to take precautions to keep infants safe, doctors say, because they are most at risk for complications from the illness.
The big picture: Louisiana has had 170 cases reported as of May 14, surpassing the number for the entire year of 2024, according to the Louisiana Department of Health.
The current record of 214 cases was set in 2013.
Threat level: Two babies have died in Louisiana since September, marking the state's first deaths from whooping cough, or pertussis, since 2018, LDH says.
Since September, 42 people have been hospitalized, with about 70% of them younger than 12 months.
So far this year, the pertussis case rate for infants in Louisiana is at least seven times higher than all other age groups, LDH says.
Cases are increasing nationally as well. Health officials attribute some of the rise in cases to declining vaccination rates and waning immunity.
What he's saying:"It is a horrible disease," says Joshua Sharfstein, a pediatrician and professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "Babies really do struggle to catch their breath, and sometimes they stop breathing altogether and it's terrifying to watch."
When babies are being hospitalized with whooping cough, he said it's an indicator that more adolescents and adults also have it but probably haven't been diagnosed.
The babies usually get exposed because someone else in the household is coughing, he said.
How it works: Whooping cough is a highly contagious respiratory illness caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis.
It spreads through coughing, sneezing and close contact, LDH says.
Symptoms include runny nose, sneezing, intense coughing fits and post-coughing vomiting for two to three weeks. Severe cases can hinder breathing and last for months.
Zoom in: Two vaccines (Tdap and DTaP) prevent serious complications, LDH says, and are available for children and adults.
But protection fades over time. LDH recommends that adults get a booster shot every 10 years.
Medical providers can do a nasal swab test to check if you have whooping cough.
Antibiotics treat the symptoms and the spread if given early, LDH says.
What to do for teens and adults: If you have a cough and are around babies, seek medical attention earlier than you would if you aren't around babies, Sharfstein encourages.
Tell the doctor you live with or interact with an infant regularly, because the doctor may think differently about your cough, he said.
Check your vaccine records, and get a booster if needed, he advised.
For babies: "I would say a cough that doesn't look right to the parents always needs to be checked out by the doctor," Sharfstein said, especially if it is a persistent cough that's interfering with a child's ability to do normal things.
He encourages parents to create a cocoon around infants by making sure everyone is vaccinated and gets tested quickly if they have a cough.
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