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Whooping cough (whooping cough) was not a threat for many years thanks to vaccinations. However, whooping cough is becoming more common now. A characteristic symptom of whooping cough is a cough, paroxysmal, choking, with a characteristic wheezing breath, resembling rooster crowing, which lasts for weeks. If the cough is tiring and you are almost suffocating during the seizures - be sure to see a doctor because it could be whooping cough.

Whooping coughor whooping cough caused by pertussisBordetella pertussis,is dangerous again. It attacks not only its favorite victims - children up to 4 years of age. It is especially dangerous for newborns and infants, because unfortunately the mother does not passive immunity to this disease to the child. More and more adults are also suffering from whooping cough.

Bacteria are transmitted by airborne droplets when coughing, sneezing, talking or through direct contact with the patient.

Whooping cough, manifested by exhausting cough, is neglected by many people. This is a mistake because they run the risk of complications, and besides, they infect other people with whooping cough.

Pertussis hatching period is 5-21 days (usually 7-14).

The infectivity is high (up to 80 percent), the highest in the first 3 weeks of the disease (in the catarrhal period and at the beginning of the bouts of bouts of cough).

Whooping cough: symptoms

Whooping cough starts like a common cold.

The most common symptoms of whooping cough are:

  • qatar
  • dry cough
  • slightly increased temperature
  • sometimes these symptoms are associated with conjunctivitis

However, after two weeks, when the cold should be long gone, the coughing gets worse. And this fact should worry us - it can mean e.g. bronchitis.

If the cough is paroxysmal, choking, with a characteristic wheezing breath like a rooster crowing - we can almost be sure that it is whooping cough.

Especially if the coughing attacks occur several times a day, they are extremely tiring, end in shortness of breath or even vomiting, and you may also involuntarily urinate or stool.

This cough is a telltale symptom of whooping cough. The paroxysmal coughing phase can last up to 10 weeks.

In young children, coughing may not occur. Instead of coughing, you may see:

  • sneezing
  • tearing
  • attacks of difficulty breathing (dyspnoea)
  • apnea

Whooping cough may be a fatal disease for the youngest.

Whooping cough: diagnosis

An internist may suspect whooping cough on the basis of symptoms alone, but a diagnosis is made only on the basis of serological or microbiological tests.

A doctor suspecting whooping cough is obliged to report the disease to the Poviat Sanitary and Epidemiological Station (PSSE).

If the clinical picture of the disease is typical and the patient has had contact with a patient with whooping cough confirmed by a laboratory, the diagnosis is certain and does not require a laboratory test. If he is unsure, he or she can order a blood test for antibodies to pertussisBordetella pertussis- the bacteria that causes the disease. Unfortunately, the study is not paid for.

Diagnostic problems in whooping cough may be due to the fact that the disease has been almost completely eradicated for many years with vaccination. However, immunity after vaccination (as well as after whooping cough disease) decreases after 5-10 years. To maintain it, you would have to take a booster dose of vaccines every 10 years.

Whooping cough: treatment

In the treatment of whooping cough, it is necessary to administer antibiotics that will destroy the pertussis bacilli. Infants and young children with severe attacks of whooping cough due to the risk of apnea should be treated in hospital.

The patient should stay at home, rest and take care of an easily digestible, vitamin-rich diet.

The doctor will probably also prescribe some cough relief measures.

Under the influence of therapy, the disease should regress, although coughing may persist for many weeks.

Whooping cough: complications

Whooping cough can have serious complications:

  • pneumonia
  • bronchitis
  • otitis media and inflammation of the inner ear
  • pleural abscess
  • emphysema
  • convulsions
  • apnea
  • encephalitis
  • CNS bleeding
  • pertussis encephalopathy - damage to the child's brain and the resulting disturbance of the child's psychophysical development
  • in adults, fractures of the ribs are a common complication
  • vomiting
  • sleep disturbance
  • weight loss.

The persistent cough that accompanies whooping cough can be a serious threat to adults after thoracic or abdominal surgery, as well as patients with hernia. It can also cause aneurysm rupture, chronic exacerbationrespiratory diseases (e.g. COPD) and even lead to urinary incontinence.

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Category:

Infectious diseases