SC: Whooping Cough

[Shiloh]

Source: http://www.independentmail.com/news/2009/oct/17/whooping-cough-rise-upstate/

Whooping cough on the rise in the Upstate

By Charmaine Smith-Miles (Contact)
Originally published 06:58 p.m., October 17, 2009
Updated 06:58 p.m., October 17, 2009

Susie Makison knows whooping cough isn?t one of those illnesses that has faded from existence thanks to vaccinations.

For five months in 2005, she coughed while suffering from the respiratory infection.

According to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, the number of cases of whooping cough is on the rise in the Upstate. From January to September, 41 cases were reported in the health department?s region 1, nearly tripling the number of cases reported for all of 2008.

?It was one of the toughest things I?ve been through,? said Makison, who works for the health department. ?You can break ribs or cause pneumonia. I didn?t stop coughing for five months.?

In 2005, 204 cases were reported in region 1, which covers eight Upstate counties, including Anderson, Oconee and Abbeville. That number represented nearly half of the 423 cases reported statewide. That?s a sharp increase from the four cases reported in region 1 and 27 cases reported statewide in 1995.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of reported cases of whooping cough has dropped dramatically since 1950. But in 2006, 15,632 cases still were reported nationwide.

Whooping cough can be deadly for infants, according to health officials in Anderson. The disease can lead to a baby not being able to breathe. But in adults, the illness can be just a painful cough.

Makison said the department has seen a baby as young as 1 month old contract whooping cough. Babies younger than 2 months cannot receive the vaccine.

Vaccinations pushed the number of whooping cough cases down. The trouble now?

Whooping cough, or pertussis, is one of those illnesses, like tetnus, that people are vaccinated against as children. But Makison and AnMed Health infectious disease specialist, Dr. David Potts, said the effectiveness of the vaccine provided to children wears off over time.

?We hear people say all the time, ?But I got my vaccine,?? Makison said. ?But we know now, those antibodies wear off over time.?

Potts said that until recently, a whooping cough vaccine wasn?t available for adults. The childhood vaccine cannot be provided to adults, Potts said.

?The vaccine that you give to children is toxic to adults,? he added. ?Now we have a great vaccine, and we encourage all adults to get the vaccine.?

INSET:


The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control offers the vaccination for whooping cough, called the Tdap shot, for adults at the following flu vaccine clinics:

Anderson County

Oct. 20 - Chiquola Baptist Church in Honea Path, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Oct. 27 - Anderson Recreation Center in Anderson, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Nov. 3 - Pendleton First Baptist Chuch in Pendleton, 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Nov. 9 - Iva Civic Center in Iva, 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Nov. 10 - First Baptist Church in Belton, 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Oconee County

Oct. 22 - Mountain Rest Community Center in Mountain Rest, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Nov. 5 - Seneca Health Department in Seneca, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information about the clinics, call the health department office in Anderson County at (86... or in Oconee County at (864) 8....

Source: South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

 

[Tonka]

Re: SC: Whooping Cough

http://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-heral...igher-than-average-mumps-whooping-cough-cases


? SC has higher-than-average mumps, whooping cough cases

By EMMA BAILEY - The Timaru Herald Last updated 05:00 29/10/2009
South Canterbury ? home of legionnaires, whooping cough and mumps.

Latest statistics show the region featuring at the wrong end of the notifiable diseases chart, but health authorities are not concerned with the high placing as only small numbers of people have been affected.

National surveillance of notifiable diseases by health boards for the past year to September show South Canterbury District Health Board (SCDHB) has the second-highest incidence of legionnaires' disease and mumps in the country and the fourth-highest incidence of pertussis (whooping cough).

South Canterbury medical officer of health Dr Daniel Williams said the number of people affected was small.

"The relatively high annual rates for South Canterbury for mumps and legionellosis are on the basis of small numbers. Two cases of mumps and three cases of legionellosis during the 12 months to September.

"Both mumps and legionellosis occur sporadically throughout the country.

"There were 25 cases of pertussis in SCDHB in the 12 months to September. There have been more cases of pertussis in 2009 than in 2008, and there was concern earlier in the year that the increased numbers might herald the start of another pertussis epidemic.

"However, notifications have not continued to increase, and remain well below the very high levels seen in South Canterbury during the last pertussis epidemic.

"The pattern has been similar in Canterbury and on the West Coast. In South Canterbury the highest rates of pertussis have been in the 15 to 19-year-old age group."

The key preventive measure for pertussis was on-time immunisation, he said.

"Pertussis may be life threatening for infants, whose narrow airways can become blocked, leading to breathing difficulties. Pertussis is an unpleasant and lingering disease in older children and adults. Immunity, whether due to immunisation or infection with pertussis, wanes with time, so ensuring children are re-vaccinated before starting school is important in stopping the spread of infection."

SCDHB chief executive Chris Fleming said latest statistics from the Ministry of Health showed 80 per cent of New Zealand two-year-olds were fully immunised, with the region comparing well.

"South Canterbury has a higher immunisation rate than the national average," he said.