PC: Fox 11 Online
(WTAQ-WLUK) — Health officials say cases of pertussis (whooping cough) are circulating Shawano County.
The Shawano-Menominee Counties Health Department says whooping cough is caused by a bacteria and easily spreads from person to person through contact with droplets of saliva expelled by an infected person when they talk, cough, or sneeze, etc.
Initially symptoms may be similar to the common cold: runny nose, sneezing, low-grade fever, and mild occasional cough.
Individuals can further develop uncontrollable, violent coughing that makes it hard to breathe.
After coughing, someone with pertussis may need to take deep breaths causing a “whooping” sound. Infected people can spread pertussis up to three weeks after the cough begins if they are not treated with the appropriate antibiotics.
Pertussis can affect people of all ages however, it can be very serious, even deadly, for babies less than one year old. Many babies who get pertussis are infected by older siblings, parents, or caregivers who might not even know they have the disease.
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