SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Pertussis, a disease commonly known as whooping cough, is continuing to surge in San Diego County.
Newly released data from the San Diego County Heath and Human Services Agency reports 615 confirmed or probable whooping cough cases have been recorded countywide between the start of the year and Nov. 27, nearly double the total number of cases reported in 2023.
The vast majority of these cases have been among children under the age of 17, county health officials say. Spread also appears to be particularly acute for those in North County communities like Poway, Rancho Santa Fe and Carlsbad, where the case rate per capita is highest.
The uptick in pertussis mirrors a trend observed nationwide by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that suggests the highly contagious disease is circulating rapidly. To date, the U.S. has seen six times as many cases this year than the same time in 2023.
In California, San Diego County has seen more growth in whooping cough cases than any other county in the state, easily surpassing numbers reported by state health officials in other densely-populated counties like Los Angeles and Riverside.
While some of this growth has been attributed to a shift back to pre-COVID patterns paired with low pertussis vaccination uptake at the height of the pandemic, federal health officials warn the case count could continue to rise if people do not exercise caution.
The disease can lead to especially harmful — if not fatal — complications for young children and babies, or those with certain pre-existing conditions that make them vulnerable to changes in their respiratory system, the CDC says.
The thick mucus built up in the airway when these at-risk groups get pertussis could cause apnea, or life-threatening pauses in breathing.
As its name suggests, pertussis’ main symptom is a bad cough, followed by a “high-pitched intake of breath that sounds like ‘whoop,’” the Mayo Clinic explains.
The onset of the illness can present like a common cold, with congestion, coughing, a runny nose, watery eyes and fever. If these symptoms persist or the coughing transforms into “uncontrollable” fits after a few weeks, it may be whooping cough.
Pertussis is spread primarily through the air from person-to-person, like when a person sneezes or breathes in close proximity to another.
Recovery from whooping cough can be slow, but most adults are able to do it on their own with the help of antibiotics. If you feel like you may have been exposed to it or are at increased risk for complications, a doctor can prescribe antibiotics before symptoms begin showing.
County health officials say it is very important to treat the disease as early as possible to curb its severity and keep it from spreading it to others.
However, the CDC says vaccination is the best way to prevent pertussis infections. As its efficacy wanes over time, officials recommend people keep themselves or their kids up to date with the vaccine dose schedule.
Most people get doses of the whooping cough vaccine at 2 months, 4 months and 6 months, as well as three booster rounds — one between the ages of 15 and 18 months, another around 4 to 6 years, and the third at 11 or 12. Adults can also get vaccinated if they have not been before.
Nexstar’s Alix Martichoux contributed to this report.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
