Saskatchewan Health Authority's Deputy Medical Health Officer in Saskatoon, Dr. Simon Kapaj, spoke with media Wednesday on how you can protect yourself from pertussis (whooping cough), following a cluster of cases in Rosthern and surrounding communities.
Watch the video clip for questions and answers about the situation, and what you can do to protect yourself and your family.
What is pertussis?
Pertussis, or “whooping cough”, is a serious and highly contagious infection of the lungs and throat caused by Bordetella pertussis bacteria. Young children who have not been immunized get sicker than older children and adults. Early diagnosis and treatment is important to stop the spread of the pertussis bacteria.
- Pertussis spreads easily when an infected person coughs, sneezes or has close contact with others. It starts like a common cold with symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose, mild fever and a mild cough.
- During the next week or two, the cough gets worse, leading to severe coughing spells that often end with a whooping sound before the next breath, especially in young children.
- Teenagers and adults may not make the whooping sound.
- The cough can last one to two months and occurs ore often at night. The cough can make a person gag or spit out mucus, and make it hard to take a breath. This prevents enough oxygen from getting to the brain
Is pertussis treatable?
Pertussis is treated with antibiotics, which help to reduce the spread of infection and the duration of illness when given during the very early stage of the illness.
Pertussis containing vaccines are part of the routine childhood immunization program (2 months of age to Grade 8). An adult immunization program is now available as well.
Need more information?