A significant rise has been noticed in a rare illness, also called pertussis across the United States.
Cases have exceeded pre-pandemic levels, which poses a significant health threat on adults, experts warned that it can be fatal for newborns and infants, especially those under two months old.
According to a report published in the journal Pediatrics, most infants and new born babies get hospitalised after getting infected by pertussis.
“Pertussis symptoms are different in infants,” An infectious diseases specialist and assistant professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, lead author Dr. Caitlin Li stated, “The characteristic whooping cough may be absent, but apnea, or breathing interruption, is common.”
In infants, pertussis causes leukocytosis (high white blood cell counts) that may also lead to cancer and other debilitating conditions.
Experts urged the health professionals to consider pertussis when evaluating infants with similar symptoms of the disease.
To prevent the rapidly spreading disease, experts stressed the need for vaccination to protect everyone.
Furthermore, researchers noted that pertussis vaccination of pregnant ladies is essential to avoid the risk of complications.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) strongly advised childhood vaccination against pertussis at 2, 4, 6, 15-18 months and again at 4-6 years of age.
A jab is recommended between 11 and 12 years, with catch-up doses through age 18.
