4 Puyallup students being treated for whooping cough

PUYALLUP, Wash. — Four students at Rogers High School in Puyallup are being treated for pertussis, which is commonly known as whooping cough.

Puyallup School District Health Services Coordinator Emily Powell said the families of students at most risk of exposure from the infected students have been contacted.

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Those families who did not receive a letter do not have a student who was exposed to the infected students, Powell said.

Although pertussis is most serious for infants, it’s a good idea to be aware of pertussis symptoms and make sure your child's pertussis vaccination is up to date.

The district says children 10 years and older and adults should get the Tdap immunization. This vaccine is especially important if there is a new baby at home now or coming soon, and for everyone who may come in contact with a baby.

To protect newborns from pertussis, pregnant women should receive a Tdap immunization with every pregnancy (between 27 and 36 weeks).

The germs that cause pertussis spread through respiratory droplets when an infected person sneezes, coughs or talks. Pertussis first starts like a cold with a runny nose followed by a cough.

The cough can occur in fits or can lead to vomiting. Between coughing spells, the person often appears to be well. This coughing stage may last for many weeks.

Adults, teens, and vaccinated children often have milder symptoms that look like bronchitis or asthma. Fever is absent or low-grade.

Whooping cough is a highly contagious respiratory disease.

The Center for Disease Control writes pertussis is known for uncontrollable, violent coughing which often makes it hard to breathe. After fits of many coughs, someone with pertussis often needs to take deep breaths which result in a "whooping" sound.

Cox Media Group