TOMPKINS COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
Alice Cole, RN, MSE – Public Health Director

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information contact:
Karen Bishop, RN: 274-6604
Carol Mohler, RN: 274-6604
Sigrid Connors, RN: 274-6603

 

Tompkins County Health Department Reports Pertussis Outbreak

(Ithaca, NY – August 31, 2006) – Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a highly contagious disease involving the respiratory tract. It is caused by a bacterium that is found in the mouth, nose and throat of an infected person. Since June 2006, there have been 29 laboratory confirmed cases in Tompkins County. The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) defines an outbreak as 2 or more epidemiologically linked cases. Pertussis incidence has been on the rise nationally over the last few years.

Pertussis can occur at any age and most cases are reported in children under 5 years of age. However, there has been an increase in the number of adolescents and adults who have been infected with pertussis according to the NYSDOH. This is also true in Tompkins County.

Karen Bishop, Supervising Community Health Nurse at the Tompkins County Health Department (TCHD) warns that complications from pertussis may include pneumonia, middle ear infection, loss of appetite, dehydration, seizures, and episodes of brief cessation of breathing. “Infants are particularly at risk from older siblings, parents, or caregivers who may be harboring the bacteria. The incubation period is usually 5 to 10 days but may be as long as 21 days,” she said.

Bishop noted that pertussis begins with mild cold symptoms including sneezing, runny nose, low-grade fever and a mild cough. Within 2 weeks, the cough becomes more severe and is characterized by episodes of numerous rapid coughs followed by a high-pitched “whoop.” Coughing episodes may recur for 1 to 2 months and are more frequent at night.

“Because pertussis is a bacterial infection, it can be treated with antibiotics,” Bishop advised. She urges anyone who may have these symptoms to call their physician immediately. The health department has kept local physicians apprised of pertussis incidence in the County, she added.

Pertussis is spread person to person through close contact with respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes. “If people are exposed in this way and develop symptoms,” Karen Bishop says, “they should stay home from work, school and social gatherings to avoid exposing friends and extended family until they are medically evaluated and treated.”

The single most effective way of preventing pertussis is maintaining the highest level of immunization in the community. Infants receive pertussis immunization as part of routine childhood immunization. And within the last year, vaccines have become available for adolescents and adults. Basic respiratory hygiene - hand washing and covering coughs and sneezes and antibiotic treatment for those diagnosed with pertussis are crucial in controlling the spread of pertussis in the community.

For more information: www.tompkins-co.org/health/chs/pertussis.htm or call 274-6604.

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