Whooping Cough (pertussis) Detailed Information for Sufferers

Go to detailed symptoms of Whooping Cough page

Summary of symptoms in children over 1 year, teens and adults

Whooping cough starts with  a bit of a cold and sometimes mild feverishness, often a sore throat and a bit of a tickly cough.

After about 7 to 10 days the cough starts coming in spasms of continuous coughing that may last several minutes.

These paroxysms of coughing usually occur every few hours and there may be little or no coughing between the attacks.

The attacks of coughing may be followed by vomiting or drooling or both. Sometimes after the lungs have been emptied of air from a paroxysm, a deep indrawing of breath causes  a whooping noise from the throat as air is sucked back in.

The number of paroxysms can vary from 5 to 50 in 24 hours. 12 is quite usual.

This can go on for 2 to 6 weeks or more before becoming less severe and slowly fizzling out over several weeks.

Read the Blog “So You Think You Have Whooping Cough”

Summary of symptoms in babies

Babies can get very seriously ill from whooping cough especially if they are not immunised. One in a hundred are likely to die from it despite the best medical care. It is not rare. In recent years about one in a thousand was catching it unless the mother had a pregnancy booster shot.

Babies are too weak to keep coughing so violently and they are prone to not restart breathing after a paroxysm, or sometimes just stop breathing instead of coughing. All babies with whooping cough need hospital treatment.

Symptoms of whooping cough in detail

Summary of treatment

If whooping cough is caught in the very early stages before symptoms are fully developed, in the first 10 days for instance, an antibiotic such as azithromycin can reduce its severity. If given in the incubation period it may prevent it altogether.

The same antibiotic is used in the first 3 weeks from onset in order to prevent spreading it to others, but after this time it is unnecessary and not beneficial.

Babies need to be in hospital for treatment of whooping cough and support and they may need high dependency care.

Cough medicines and inhalers do not help.

Treatment of whooping cough in detail

Summary of prevention

During the incubation period of whooping cough, which is 7 to 10 days, an antibiotic such as azithromycin can prevent it developing.

Immunization is the chief prevention method for whooping cough. The precise programme varies from country to country but always consists of a primary course of three injections at monthly intervals starting at about 2 months of age. Boosters are usually given after intervals of years.

A booster injection in mid pregnancy prevents most cases that would otherwise occur in the the first few months of life, which is the most dangerous age to get whooping cough.

Herd immunity is the strongest aspect of whooping cough prevention as it stops it spreading if there are good levels of individual immunity. Individual immunity comes from immunization and occasional exposure to the infection which can boost immunity in those previously immunised without us being aware of it.

Prevention of whooping cough in detail