Whooping cough, also called pertussis, is very easy to catch (infectious). It is a bacterial infection of the lungs and airways. It is spread in the droplets of the coughs or sneezes of someone with the infection. It causes repeated coughing bouts. The cough can last for 2 to 3 months or more, and can make babies and young children in particular very ill. Immunisations can help protect your child from severe infection (although your child may still get pertussis even if they are fully immunised).
Click to hear what whooping cough sounds like
Who’s at risk of whooping cough
Whooping cough can affect people of any age, including:
- babies and young children – young babies under 6 months of age are at a particularly increased risk of complications of whooping cough
- older children and adults – it tends to be less serious in these cases, but can still be unpleasant and frustrating
- people who’ve had whooping cough before – you’re not immune to whooping cough if you’ve had it before, although it tends to be less severe the second time around
- people vaccinated against whooping cough as a child – protection from the whooping cough vaccine tends to wear off after a few years
You can get whooping cough if you come into close contact with someone with the infection. A person with whooping cough is infectious from about 6 days after they were infected – when they just have cold-like symptoms – until three weeks after the coughing bouts start. Antibiotic treatment does not stop the cough but can reduce the length of time someone is infectious and stop the spread.
Symptoms of whooping cough
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Catarrhal phase: The first symptoms of whooping cough are similar to those of a cold, such as a runny nose, red and watery eyes, a sore throat, and a slightly raised temperature. This is called the catarrhal phase and it lasts about 1-2 weeks with the cough gradually becoming more severe.
- Paroxysmal phase: Intense coughing bouts start about a week later. The bouts usually last a few minutes at a time and tend to be more common at night. Coughing usually brings up thick mucus and may be followed by vomiting. Between coughing bouts, you or your child may gasp for breath – this may cause a ‘whoop’ sound, although not everyone has this. The strain of coughing can cause the face to become very red, and there may be some slight bleeding under the skin or in the eyes. This is called the paroxysmal phase and it can last between 1-6 weeks. The coughing bouts occur frequently at night, with an average of 15 attacks per 24 hours. They increase in frequency during the first 1 to 2 weeks. Young children can sometimes briefly appear blue – this often looks worse than it is and their colour should return to normal quickly. In very young babies, the cough may not be particularly noticeable, but there may be brief periods where they stop breathing.
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Convalescent phase: The bouts will eventually start to become less-severe and less frequent over time, but it may be a few months before they stop completely. This is called the convalescent phase. The cough associated with pertussis can be particularly persistent and challenging. It is not uncommon for the cough to last for 10 weeks or more, even without treatment. This is often referred to as the “100-day cough.”