Southwestern Pennsylvania seeing whooping cough outbreak amid large increase in cases nationwide

PITTSBURGH — Southwestern Pennsylvania is experiencing a whooping cough outbreak and the commonwealth leads the nation in newly reported cases.

Channel 11 has learned there are five times as many cases being reported now compared to this time last year.

We spoke with Dr. Glenn Rapsinski, an instructor of pediatric infectious disease at UPMC Children’s Hospital.

“Last data that I looked at, we’re making up about 10% of the total whooping cough surge that we’re seeing nationwide is happening in Pennsylvania,” Dr. Rapsinski explained.

Dr. Rapsinski said early whooping cough symptoms can mimic the common cold: fever, congestion and runny nose before the coughing starts.

“It goes on to develop this set of cough that keeps coming and coming,” he explained.

It can be extremely dangerous for infants.

“Most infants less than about 6 months of age will be at really high risk of getting whooping cough and about, if I read the data correctly, it’s about 30% or a third of the patients will end up being hospitalized,” Dr. Rapsinski said.

According to Rapsinski, arents or anyone who is going to be around a baby should get a T-DAP vaccine or booster.

“Everyone who is going to be around an infant should definitely, if it’s been more than five years since their last pertussis booster, they should definitely get it re-upped,” Rapsinski said.

Symptoms can last up to 10 weeks.

An antibiotic is available, and while it will make you less infectious to others, it won’t reduce the duration of the infection.

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