Adult
Whooping Cough Affects Thousands Yearly
Although adult whooping cough
isn’t an infection you hear a lot about, cases of the contagious
illness are on the rise. In 2005, the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention reported that as many as 19,000 cases of whooping
cough were reported. But a study that same year stated that at least
1 million cases of adult whooping cough could be prevented if teenagers
and adults are routinely vaccinated against the respiratory disease.
The problem is that many people who contract the illness initially
believe they only have a persistent cough and cold. The symptoms
for adult whooping cough are quite similar to those of someone with
a bad cold. Sneezing, mild fever, nasal congestion, watery eyes,
and a dry cough are mild symptoms, but it’s when the person
begins to have bouts of forceful, painful, exhausting coughing followed
by a “whoop” sound when the person inhales, that it’s
evident the condition is not a common cold.
Adult whooping cough, like any whooping cough, is contracted through
droplets in the air that are coughed out by someone with the infection.
There is a vaccine for the disease but infants who haven’t
been fully vaccinated or teenagers whose vaccines have started wearing
off are most susceptible to contracting the infection. Symptoms
usually take 3 to 12 days to appear after becoming infected and
once you’ve hit the later stages of adult whooping cough the
symptoms worsen and include:
- Severe coughing attacks that bring up thick
phlegm
- Coughing fits that can last a long period
of time without stopping; each one ending with a high-pitched
“whoop” when you take your next breath
- Vomiting and blueness in the face is a common
symptom for children
- Fatigue from the excessive and forceful
coughing spells
Adult whooping cough sufferers are often
told to get plenty of bed rest and are prescribed antibiotics. Sometimes
the antibiotics don’t work but when they do they help shorten
the duration of the illness.
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