New ‘100-day cough’ warning as cases reach 10-year high – is your area affected?

CASES of the dreaded ‘100-day-cough’ have risen for a fifth consecutive week in a row, reaching a 10-year-high.

A total of 412 Brits fell ill with the bacterial infection medically known as pertussis in the week leading up to February 4.

That’s a 20 per cent jump from the previous week, which saw suspected 344 cases recorded in England and Wales, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

All together, that adds up to a whopping 1,416 suspected cases of whooping cough in the first five weeks of 2024.

As the UKHSA’s data relies on cases of whooping cough seen by GPs, the true number is likely significantly higher.

Cases haven’t been this high at the start of the year in over a decade – just 189 pertussis infections were reported in the first five weeks of 2014, the Mirror reported.

Numbers rose gradually in the years following and the highest case-count was recorded in 2020 with a total of 431 infections – a far cry from the numbers seen this year.

Meanwhile, 13 cases were detected in the first five weeks of 2021, 55 in 2022 and 59 in 2023.

Whooping cough is bacterial infection affecting the lungs and breathing tubes that spreads very easily.

It gained it’s name from the distinctive ‘whoop’ sound some people make as they gasp for breath between coughs.

But it’s also called the ‘100-day-cough’ as it may hang on for several weeks or months.

Symptoms tend to be similar to a cold, such as a runny nose and sore throat, plus bouts of coughing that last for a few minutes and get worse at night.

Sometimes a coughing fit can be so intense that sufferers fracture ribs.

With cases of this nasty illness reaching historic highs, see how your area is affected.

Cases by region

Wales alone accounted for 22 per cent of cases and recorded the highest number of suspected whooping cough infections compared to other regions, 94.

But it was closely followed by the South East, with 93 cases spotted in the week leading up to February 4.

Next was London, with 58 infections and the North West with 48.

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Whooping cough can be especially dangerous to babies under six months old, as they have increased chance of becoming dehydrated and developing breathing problems, pneumonia or seizures.

If your little one gets whooping cough, they might need hospital treatment.

The illness tends to be less severe in older children in adults, though the NHS says it may cause problems like sore ribs, hernias – when an internal part of the body pushes through a weakness in the muscle or surrounding tissue wall, usually in the abdomen – and ear infections.

If you’re diagnosed with whooping cough within three weeks of you being infected, you’ll be given antibiotics so you’re not transmissible to others.

Sadly, these might not stop your symptoms.

If you have whooping cough, you’re contagious from about six days after the start of cold-like symptoms and up to three weeks after the coughing starts.

The NHS advises you stay off work and keep your child home from school and nursery until 48 hours after starting antibiotics, or three weeks after your symptoms started if you’ve not had antibiotics.

How can I protect myself from whooping cough?

The best way to protect against whooping cough is vaccination.

The pertussis jab is included in the ‘6-in-1 vaccine’ given to babies at eight, 12 and 16 weeks old and the 4-in-1 pre-school booster for children aged three years four months.

It is also offered to expectant mothers who are 16 to 32 weeks pregnant.

But vaccination rates have fallen in the UK since the Covid pandemic, with the latest UKHSA data on the maternal whooping cough vaccine programme showing that uptake has dropped dramatically.

Figures for July to September 2023 show that average uptake across England was 57.4 per cent.

That’s down from 2.6 per cent from the same quarter the previous year and a 13.6 per cent decline from the peak in 2016 to 2017.

Coverage is lowest in London, at just 36.5 per cent on average, with North Central London down to 22.3 per cent.

Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: “Whooping cough affects all ages, but for unvaccinated babies and very young children it can cause serious complications.

“It’s vital that pregnant women get vaccinated to protect their babies from birth and parents ensure infants receive their vaccines at eight, 12 and 16 weeks of age or as soon as possible after that if their vaccines are delayed.

“While cases of whooping cough are now increasing following exceptionally low levels during the pandemic, they currently remain lower than the pre-pandemic years.”