Whooping Cough Spreading

I have talked to parents of kids who have gotten whooping cough. It is really scary. If you want your kids immunized, don't put it off because you're too busy. It is just not worth it.

FROM NBC: Cases of whooping cough spiked in 2010 -- one of the worst years on record. Most infants receive the whooping cough vaccine -- which experts say is highly effective.

Yet many teens and adults may not be fully immunized because a vaccine for that age group was licensed just 6 years ago, in 2005. Last year, there were more than 21-thousand cases of whooping cough in the u-s, according to statistics from the centers for disease control. 26 people died.

The CDC's advisory committee on immunization practices now recommends the vaccine for all adults who spend time around babies who are too young for the shot.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Whooping Cough Outbreak

So my new insurance does not cover immunizations and I have yet to get my one-year-old in for his shots at the health department. After reading this, I will be making the appointment tomorrow!

FROM CNN:
A ninth baby has died in California from whooping cough, health officials said Thursday.

All nine infants were under three months of age, the state's Department of Public Health said.

As of Tuesday, the state has recorded more illnesses due to whooping cough -- 4,017 -- than in any year since 1955, the department said.

Whooping cough, or pertussis, may look like just like a cold or a persistent cough in adults. But in infants, it can be fatal, doctors say.

Whooping cough was declared an epidemic in California in June. Peaks in cases of the highly contagious disease cycle every two to five years. California saw its last peak in 2005, with 3,182 cases, according to state health officials.

Vaccination role unclear in whooping cough outbreak

Some doctors relate this recent rise in cases to the parents who have shied away from vaccinating children due to fears, albeit unfounded, that there is a connection between vaccines and autism.

Dr. Jennifer Shu, a pediatrician at Children's Medical Group in Atlanta, Georgia, thinks this is a primary factor in the resurgence of whooping cough.

A 2009 study in Pediatrics found that parental refusal of whooping cough vaccination was associated with children's risk of pertussis infection. Previous research had shown a steady increase of parents who refuse immunization in the last decade.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Skipping Immunizations

Since we talked about kids having coughing spells this week, I thought I should probably post this story too. Kids who skip vaccinations are more likely to get whooping cough. I haven't met very many people who skip out on immunizations all together. Most of the parents with concerns just wait a little longer to get them and don't get them all at one time.

I would like to know what you think about the possibility of a swine flu vaccine by next fall. I am not saying it won't be safe, but I am concerned about getting a vaccine made and mass produced in such a short period of time. How could it be accurately tested that fast? I am no scientist, but I wondered if any other parents are concerned about this.

Here's the story about whooping cough (which I do remember reporting on in Illinois in the last few years):

Children whose parents choose not to give them immunizations have a greater risk of developing whooping cough. Although most children get the recommended vaccinations, pediatricians say it appears the number of parents opting out of immunizations is rising.

A new Kaiser Permanente study looked at the whooping cough vaccine -- and found unvaccinated children are 23 times more likely to develop the highly contagious bacterial disease. It causes uncontrollable and violent coughing spells and can be deadly in infants. The study did not look at side effects of the shots, or why parents declined the vaccine.

But researchers say they hope their findings disprove the theory that herd immunity -- protection because a large portion of the population has been vaccinated -- doesn't necessarily protect children from whooping cough.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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