Two St. Michael’s Students Have Whooping Cough; Health Officials Urge Immunizations

Seven new cases of whooping cough in San Diego County have been reported this week, including two students at in Poway, according to the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency. The new cases may have exposed others to the disease and increases the number of such whooping cough cases in the county to 205.

The students at St. Michael’s are a 12-year-old who was due for a booster shot and a 14-year-old that was up-to-date with immunizations, according to the county. The students’ names and genders were not released.

In 2010, there were a record 1,144 cases of whooping cough, or pertussis, in San Diego County, including two infant deaths.

“Pertussis continues to spread in our community especially among those who have not been fully immunized,” said Wilma Wooten, county public health officer. “Immunizations help protect children from whooping cough. Parents should check with their pediatrician to make sure their child is up-to-date with immunizations, including the pertussis booster shot if they are entering 7th to 12th grade this fall to comply with the new school law.”

Residents can get vaccinated at their primary care doctor or at an HHSA Public Health Center if they don’t have a regular healthcare provider.

The California Department of Public Health recommends a pertussis booster vaccine, or Tdap, for everyone 10 years or older who has not yet received it, especially women of childbearing age before, during or immediately after pregnancy; and other people, including household contacts, caregivers and healthcare workers who have contact with pregnant women or infants. Children 7-9 who did not receive all of their routine childhood shots are recommended to receive a Tdap booster dose.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends that children get one dose of Tdap vaccine at the following ages: 2 months; 4 months; 6 months; 15 to 18 months; and 4 to 6 years. Children should receive a Tdap booster shot at 11-12 years. Beginning July 1, all students in 7th through 12th grade, in public and private schools, must show proof that they had the pertussis booster shot before they return to school.

A typical case of pertussis starts with a cough and runny nose for one to two weeks, followed by weeks to months of rapid coughing fits that sometimes end with a whooping sound. Fever, if present, is usually mild. The disease is treatable with antibiotics.

For more information about whooping cough, call the HHSA Immunization Branch at (866) 358-2966 or visit the web site at www.sdiz.org.