DENISON, TX -- Vaccination for pertussis, also known as whooping
cough, is one of several required school shots.Grayson County
Health Department request early immunization for kids. But with
a recent rise in whooping cough cases, health officials now urge
vaccinations for everyone. According to the Center for Disease
Control, the number of whooping cough cases have increased each
year from 1980 through 2005. A recent study reports a 44%
increase in cases nationwide with confirmed cases in Oklahoma.
Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial disease
affecting infants, children and adults. Symptoms include
uncontrollable, violent coughing that create a whooping sound as
patients struggle for air. Health officials report 970 cases so
far this year in New York alone, compared to 931 for all of
2011. The CDC says cases increased the most among kids and teens
ages 10 through 19 and in infants less than 6 months old.
Grayson County Clinic Nurse Nancy Grella says the disease is
contracted through infected coughs