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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffWhooping cough (pertussis) is a highly contagious respiratory tract infection. In advanced stages, it's marked a severe, hacking cough followed by a high-pitched intake of breath that sounds like "whoop."
In the first half of the 20th century, whooping cough was a leading cause of childhood illness and death in the United States. But after the introduction of a vaccine, the number of cases gradually declined, reaching a low in the mid-1970s.
Since then, however, the incidence of whooping cough has been increasing, primarily among children too young to have completed the full course of vaccinations and teenagers and adults whose immunity has faded.
- Pertussis (whooping cough): What you need to know. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/Features/Pertussis/. Accessed Oct. 9, 2009.
- Hewlett EL. Whooping cough and other Bordetella infections. In: Goldman L, et al. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/164191733-4/899761629/1492/1170.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2805-5..50339-6_14460. Accessed Oct. 9, 2009.
- Long SS. Pertussis. In: Kliegman RM, et al. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/164191733-4/899761629/1608/548.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2450-7..50196-1_4360. Accessed Oct. 9, 2009.
- Lipsky M. Pertussis (whooping cough). American Medical Association. http://www.medem.com/?q=medlib/article/ZZZPWVII1AC. Accessed Oct. 9, 2009.
- Yeh S, et al. Clinical features and diagnosis of Bordetella pertussis infection in infants and children. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Oct. 9, 2009.
- Yeh S. Treatment and prevention of Bordetella pertussis infection in infants and children. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Oct. 13, 2009.
