What is Whooping Cough?

Whooping cough is a highly contagious respiratory tract infection that can show signs of a common cold but is far more serious. A sure-fire way of recognizing the difference between an ordinary cough and a whooping cough is that sufferers will have a hacking cough that is then followed by a sharp, high-pitched intake of breath that makes a “whoop” sound. Although you can be vaccinated for whooping cough, the number of those affected is increasing. The people who are usually susceptible to whooping cough are infants who haven’t had all their vaccines yet, and teenagers whose vaccines have worn down. Still, anybody can develop whooping cough.

Again, many people who come down with whooping cough first mistake it for a regular cold. Whooping cough symptoms take about 3 to 12 days to appear, usually and because symptoms such as a runny nose, nasal congestion, sneezing, dry cough and a mild fever are so similar to common cold symptoms the two are often mistaken. Some may wonder then, “what is whooping cough and what causes it?”

If you asked “what is whooping cough,” it is simply an infection that affects the trachea and the tubes that branch out of the trachea. It is a highly contagious infection that is transmitted through droplets that are expelled during coughing from somebody who has whooping cough. The infection is mostly contagious when you’re first infected, but it remains contagious until you’re no longer ill. People who have whooping cough have bacteria multiply and produce toxins that prevent the respiratory tract from sweeping away the germs; this leads to an excess of mucus accumulating in your airways and resulting in an uncomfortable cough.

Consult your doctor if you believe you’ve caught whooping cough. There are different treatments depending on your age and the severity of your symptoms.