FL: 2011 Whooping cough cases

[Shiloh]

Source: http://jacksonville.com/news/health...county-leads-florida-resurgent-whooping-cough

Duval County leads Florida in resurgent whooping cough
County had the most cases in the state last year; skipping shots is a pattern.
Posted: February 20, 2011 - 12:00am

By Jeremy Cox

Once facing eradication in the United States, whooping cough is making a dramatic comeback - a resurgence fueled, in part, by some parents' antipathy toward vaccinations.

From a high of about 250,000 cases annually in the 1940s, when the first whooping cough vaccine was introduced, the number of reported cases plunged to just over 1,000 a year three decades later. Since then, however, it has been creeping upward, hitting 17,000 in 2009.

And if you're looking for a poster child for this trend, look no further than Duval County...

 

[Shiloh]

Re: FL: 2011 Whooping cough cases

Source: http://www.myjournalcourier.com/news/outbreak-34373-health-pertussis.html

Health Department warns of potential whooping cough outbreak
August 02, 2011 6:06 AM
GREG OLSON

Health department officials are dealing with a potential outbreak of pertussis and are warning those who attended any of three camps that they might have been exposed.

Pertussis, commonly called whooping cough, is a highly contagious but typically mild bacterial disease that causes violent uncontrollable coughing that can make it hard to breathe.

?We have one confirmed case ... in Morgan County,? said Jacquie Barringer, the county health department?s communicable disease coordinator. ?From that case, we have three others who have symptoms...?

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: FL: 2011 Whooping cough cases

Palm Beach County baby dies from whooping cough

Officials urge children, adults to get vaccinated

By Bob LaMendola, Sun Sentinel
6:20 p.m. EDT, September 6, 2011

A 2-month-old baby in [URL="http://www.sun-sentinel.com/topic/us/florida/palm-beach-county-PLGEO100100412000000.topic"]Palm Beach County[/URL] died this week from whooping cough at a hospital in the western part of the county, the health department said Tuesday.
...
The Palm Beach County Health Department released no details about the baby or where the family lives. The infant is the first in Florida to die this year from whooping cough and the first in recent memory in South Florida, health officials said.

Full text:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/fl-hk-whooping-cough-death-20110906,0,5731561.story

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: FL: 2011 Whooping cough cases

INFANT DIES FROM WHOOPING COUGH (PERTUSSIS) HEALTH DEPARTMENT ADVISES ADULT VACCINATION

NEWS MEDIA ONLY: TIM O?CONNOR
561-671-4013 or press50@doh.state.fl.us

Press Release
SEPTEMBER 6th, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL?Pertussis, commonly known as Whooping Cough, claimed the life of an infant this week. Health officials are advising adults with infant children and those who will come in contact with infants to review their vaccination record and get a tetanus/pertussis (Tdap) booster vaccination.

?We are saddened by the death of this child and my sympathy goes out to the parents and family,? said Palm Beach County Health Department Director Alina Alonso, MD. ?We?ve seen an increase in this totally preventable disease throughout the country and this incident really brings it home.?

Newborns and infants have limited immunities and can easily contract whooping cough from a parent, sibling, grand parent or other person that may be coughing from the disease. More than half of the infants under six months of age who contract pertussis require hospitalization, are treated with a course of antibiotics, and other preventive measures to assist with breathing.

During the back to school vaccination period the Health Department emphasized the Tdap booster for seventh, eighth and ninth graders and the final dose of Diphtheria/Tetanus/Pertussis be given after age 4 for incoming kindergarteners and new students to the Palm Beach County School System. However, adults are often un-vaccinated for this easily transmissible disease that could be mistaken for a common cold in its early stages.

?It?s really important now, more than ever, for adults to get the Tdap vaccine if they haven?t been immunized recently,? added Dr. Alonso. ?All adults are encouraged to consult with their medical provider and get the tetanus/pertussis booster if eligible. The more people are protected greatly reduces the chances of passing pertussis along to a baby.?

Further information on pertussis can be found at www.cdc.gov or www.pbchd.com or by calling your medical provider. ​

Vaccine What You Need To Know​

http://www.pbchd.com/press/2011/sep/sepnews12011.html​