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Patient education: Whooping cough (The Basics)

Patient education: Whooping cough (The Basics)

What is whooping cough? — Whooping cough is an infection that causes a severe cough. It can spread easily from person to person. The medical term for whooping cough is "pertussis."

Most people get vaccines during childhood to prevent whooping cough. (Vaccines can prevent certain serious or deadly infections.) Doctors recommend that babies and young children get 5 doses of the vaccine. They also recommend that children ages 11 to 12 and most adults get 1 dose of the vaccine. Pregnant women should get 1 dose during each pregnancy. It's especially important that adults and children who are around newborn babies get the vaccine.

Babies can get whooping cough before they have had all of their vaccine doses. Children, teens, and adults can get it if they don't get their vaccines, or if it has been a few years since their last dose of the vaccine.

What are the symptoms of whooping cough? — Early on, whooping cough usually causes sneezing, runny nose, stuffy nose, and other cold symptoms. It also causes a mild cough.

After 1 to 2 weeks, the cold symptoms get better, but the cough gets worse. People have severe coughing attacks. During these attacks, children can gag, choke, or have trouble breathing. People can also vomit from coughing so hard.

After 2 to 6 weeks, the cough starts to get better. But it can take weeks to months for the cough to go away completely.

Whooping cough gets its name because many people make a "whoop" sound when they breathe in after a coughing attack. But not everyone with whooping cough makes this noise.

Will I need tests? — Maybe. Your doctor or nurse should be able to tell if you have whooping cough by talking with you, hearing your cough, and doing an exam.

They might also do tests that include:

Testing a sample of mucus from the back of your nose or throat

Blood tests

A chest X-ray

How is whooping cough treated? — Whooping cough is usually treated with antibiotics. These medicines can help the infection get better faster and keep it from spreading to others. Different antibiotics can be used to treat whooping cough, depending on the person's age.

People living with the infected person might also need to take antibiotics, even if they aren't sick. This can help keep them from getting the infection, too.

Most babies younger than 4 months need to be treated in the hospital. That's because the infection is very serious and can be deadly in babies. In the hospital, doctors and nurses can watch a baby closely and give them oxygen, fluids, and nutrition (if necessary).

Is there anything I can do on my own to feel better? — Yes. If you have whooping cough, you can:

Get plenty of rest

Drink plenty of fluids

Eat small meals to avoid vomiting after coughing

Avoid being around people who are smoking

When should I call the doctor or nurse? — If your child has whooping cough, call for an ambulance (in the US and Canada, dial 9-1-1) if they:

Stop breathing or have a hard time breathing

Have a seizure

Let the emergency workers know that your child has whooping cough so they can avoid getting or spreading the infection.

Call the doctor or nurse if you or your child has whooping cough and:

Gets a high fever

Vomits over and over again

Gets dehydrated – Dehydration is when the body loses too much water. It can make people feel thirsty, tired, dizzy, or confused, and have dark yellow urine. Babies who are dehydrated might have fewer wet diapers than usual.

You should also call the doctor or nurse if you think you or your child has whooping cough. That way, you can get treatment.

How can I prevent spreading whooping cough? — You can:

Cover your mouth when you cough, or wear a mask when you are around other people.

Wash your hands often.

Avoid being near babies and young children until you have been on antibiotics for 5 days. If you work with young children or babies, do not return to work until you have been on antibiotics for 5 days.

Make sure the other people in your home get the pertussis vaccine if they haven't had it. If your child has whooping cough, make sure the people who live with or care for your child also get the pertussis vaccine if they haven't had it.

Not let your child return to school or day care until the doctor or nurse says it's OK.

More on this topic

Patient education: Vaccines for babies and children age 0 to 6 years (The Basics)
Patient education: Vaccines for children age 7 to 18 years (The Basics)
Patient education: Vaccines for adults (The Basics)
Patient education: Acute bronchitis (The Basics)
Patient education: Cough in adults (The Basics)
Patient education: Cough in children (The Basics)
Patient education: Tdap vaccine (The Basics)

Patient education: Vaccines for infants and children age 0 to 6 years (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Vaccines for children age 7 to 18 years (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Vaccines for adults (Beyond the Basics)

This topic retrieved from UpToDate on: Jan 01, 2023.
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