Latest news with #Bordetellapertussis
Japan Today
9 hours ago
- Health
- Japan Today
Japan whooping cough cases hit record above 50,000
Colony of the Bordetella pertussis bacterium that causes pertussis, a whooping cough. The number of whooping cough cases in Japan this year has surpassed 50,000 for the first time since comparable data became available in 2018, figures from a national health research institute showed Tuesday. Preliminary data from the Japan Institute for Health Security showed that the number of cases reported by hospitals and clinics across the country in the July 14-20 period reached 3,908, marking a record-high for the fifth consecutive week. It brought the cumulative total to 52,490, topping the previous record of 16,845 cases in the whole of 2019. A highly infectious bacterial disease, whooping cough, also known as pertussis, begins with cold-like symptoms and gradually progresses to severe coughing. Infants are particularly susceptible to developing severe complications, such as pneumonia and encephalitis, which can prove fatal. © KYODO
Asahi Shimbun
22-06-2025
- Health
- Asahi Shimbun
Whooping cough on record-setting pace, fueled by resistant strains
Cases of whooping cough are nearing record levels in Japan with the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria that are difficult to treat with conventional therapies. So far this year, 16,475 patients were confirmed to have whooping cough as of May 11, approaching the record annual total of 16,850 for all of 2019, according to figures released by the Japan Institute for Health Security on May 20. The current counting system for cases of whooping cough started in 2018. The illness is also known as pertussis or the '100-day cough,' since patients can suffer severe coughing fits for two to three months. In March, a 1-month-old girl died from the illness at the Tokyo Metropolitan Children's Medical Center in Fuchu, western Tokyo. She had initially been admitted to another hospital where she received an antimicrobial agent to treat her breathing difficulties. The infant was transferred to the medical center following respiratory failure. The medical center believed the girl was infected with a pertussis-resistant bacterium and placed her on an artificial ventilator. She was given another antimicrobial drug known to work against resistant strains. Nevertheless, her pneumonia progressed, leading to respiratory failure, pulmonary hypertension and renal insufficiency. She underwent extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and dialysis, among other treatments. She died on the fifth day of her hospitalization at the medical center. The girl had no underlying health problems, but she had yet to be inoculated against whooping cough from the Bordetella pertussis bacteria. Yuho Horikoshi, head of the department of infectious disorders at the Tokyo Metropolitan Children's Medical Center, who was involved in the girl's treatment, noted the difficulty in treating babies with pertussis. 'Unvaccinated infants experience a much more rapid progression of the disease and are at higher risk of developing serious symptoms,' Horikoshi said. 'Lung damage brought on by Bordetella pertussis resulted in multiple organ dysfunction, making it virtually impossible for us to save her.' Particular attention should be given to babies in the first few months of life as they are not immune to the disease, he said. Such infants are highly susceptible to lapsing into a severe condition while contracting encephalopathy and pneumonia. They may die following convulsions, respiratory arrest or breathing cessation in apnea attacks, he said. Macrolide antimicrobials are usually used in pertussis treatment. However, reports of bacterial strains resistant to this type of medicine have recently increased. Five patients suffering from whooping cough, including the deceased girl, were found with drug-resistant bacteria between November 2024 and March 2025 at the Tokyo Metropolitan Children's Medical Center. 'Resistant bacteria are believed to be spreading significantly across Tokyo,' Horikoshi said. 'Specific steps should be taken, such as administering drugs known to be effective against resistant strains at an early stage for babies, who are especially prone to severe symptoms.' Outside the capital, whooping cough cases caused by resistant bacteria have been confirmed since last year in Okinawa, Osaka and Tottori prefectures. Vaccines can be effective against whooping cough, even antimicrobial-resistant strains, according to health experts. Four doses are recommended for children between the ages of 2 months and 18 months under Japan's regular vaccination program. Vaccinated individuals can still be infected after the effectiveness of the medicine wanes. For this reason, the Japan Pediatric Society recommends that children receive an additional dose of the triple-combination vaccine containing the anti-pertussis component before entering elementary school or when they are 11 to 12 years old. The voluntary vaccination costs 5,000 yen to 6,000 yen ($34 to $41). It is not covered by the public health program. 'Parents should get their babies vaccinated under the periodic preventive inoculation framework as soon as they turn 2 months old,' Horikoshi said. 'Whooping cough is discovered primarily among children from elementary school age to teenagers,' he continued. 'I ask that families with small children consider having siblings inoculated to protect their younger brothers and sisters if there are babies at home or when new babies are expected.'
Axios
09-06-2025
- Health
- Axios
Louisiana on track for record whooping cough cases
Whooping cough is spreading faster in Louisiana than it has in more than a decade, and health officials warn that this year could set a record for cases. Why it matters: Adults need to take precautions to keep infants safe, doctors say, because they are most at risk for complications from the illness. The big picture: Louisiana has had 170 cases reported as of May 14, surpassing the number for the entire year of 2024, according to the Louisiana Department of Health. The current record of 214 cases was set in 2013. Threat level: Two babies have died in Louisiana since September, marking the state's first deaths from whooping cough, or pertussis, since 2018, LDH says. Since September, 42 people have been hospitalized, with about 70% of them younger than 12 months. So far this year, the pertussis case rate for infants in Louisiana is at least seven times higher than all other age groups, LDH says. Cases are increasing nationally as well. Health officials attribute some of the rise in cases to declining vaccination rates and waning immunity. What he's saying:"It is a horrible disease," says Joshua Sharfstein, a pediatrician and professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "Babies really do struggle to catch their breath, and sometimes they stop breathing altogether and it's terrifying to watch." When babies are being hospitalized with whooping cough, he said it's an indicator that more adolescents and adults also have it but probably haven't been diagnosed. The babies usually get exposed because someone else in the household is coughing, he said. How it works: Whooping cough is a highly contagious respiratory illness caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. It spreads through coughing, sneezing and close contact, LDH says. Symptoms include runny nose, sneezing, intense coughing fits and post-coughing vomiting for two to three weeks. Severe cases can hinder breathing and last for months. Zoom in: Two vaccines (Tdap and DTaP) prevent serious complications, LDH says, and are available for children and adults. But protection fades over time. LDH recommends that adults get a booster shot every 10 years. Medical providers can do a nasal swab test to check if you have whooping cough. Antibiotics treat the symptoms and the spread if given early, LDH says. What to do for teens and adults: If you have a cough and are around babies, seek medical attention earlier than you would if you aren't around babies, Sharfstein encourages. Tell the doctor you live with or interact with an infant regularly, because the doctor may think differently about your cough, he said. Check your vaccine records, and get a booster if needed, he advised. For babies: "I would say a cough that doesn't look right to the parents always needs to be checked out by the doctor," Sharfstein said, especially if it is a persistent cough that's interfering with a child's ability to do normal things. He encourages parents to create a cocoon around infants by making sure everyone is vaccinated and gets tested quickly if they have a cough. Go deeper
Miami Herald
21-05-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Whooping cough cases double this year compared to 2024. Here's what to know
As schools across the country release their students and the summer season begins, one respiratory illness shows no sign of slowing down. Whooping cough, or Bordetella pertussis, is a highly contagious bacterial infection that may begin similar to the common cold, but can drag on for weeks or months. From 2023 to 2024, cases of whooping cough increased more than 600%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, marking the highest case numbers since 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. Data published so far this year shows the same trend, with 2025 slated to outpace the previous years. Here's what you need to know. 2025 cases double There were 259 new cases of whooping cough reported across 22 states during the week ending May 10, according to the National Notifiable Diseases: Infectious Weekly Tables published by the CDC. Two states outpaced the others, with Oklahoma reporting 60 new cases and Florida reporting 49 new cases. California and Arizona also had elevated case numbers, with both reporting 21 new cases, while Ohio stood out in the Midwest, reporting 20 new whooping cough cases, according to the data. Cases are reported by local, state and territorial health departments, and may not be exhaustive if someone doesn't seek medical treatment and receive a diagnosis, the CDC notes. The latest numbers, week 19 of the year, bring the cumulative total number of cases in 2025 to 10,771, nearly double the number from 2024. The same time period — Jan. 1 to May 10, 2024 — counted 5,707 cases, according to the CDC. The weekly table reports do not include the age of those infected. The bacteria that causes whooping cough spreads person-to-person through the air, specifically through coughs and sneezes, the CDC says. Infected people can spread the bacteria for weeks after they start coughing, and many with mild symptoms can spread the infection without ever knowing they have whooping cough. 'Many babies who get whooping cough are infected by older siblings, parents or caregivers who don't know they have it,' the CDC says. What's to blame for case spike? Vaccination against whooping cough is part of the regular vaccine regimen for children, and vaccines are available for teens, pregnant women and adults who were never vaccinated. However, a report published at the end of 2024 found that the rise in cases may stem from misinformation and lack of information about the whooping cough vaccine, including many parents who may not know pertussis and whooping cough are the same thing. A survey found 30% of American adults were unsure whether a vaccine existed, despite the shot becoming available for the first time in the 1940s, McClatchy News previously reported. Other vaccine-preventable illnesses, from measles to polio, could make significant comebacks with changes to American vaccine policy, KFF Health News and NPR reported.
CTV News
05-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Whooping cough outbreak declared over in New Brunswick
This 2016 illustration based on electron microscope imagery and provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention depicts Bordetella pertussis bacteria, which causes whooping cough. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Meredith Newlove, CDC via AP)
