Whooping cough causes concern for health care

There has been another outbreak of whooping cough and experts are worried this could lead to an epidemic. Health professionals are looking into ways of providing protection from the disease.

BBC News reports, whooping cough is spreading across the United Kingdom as several babies and young children have been diagnosed. The worrying news is that, even with the immunization, people are not safe. Children are immunized after two, three, four months old and after this time, just before they start primary school. Even if children have received the immunization they are not properly protected until they receive the booster, before primary school. Immunization for whooping cough weakens and this means that adults can get the illness, even if they have had immunization. Authorities are looking at ways they can improve immunization, by possibly providing a booster during teenage years. Although whooping cough does not always kill, it is a serious disease. There are people who have died from whooping cough. The number of people who are getting whooping cough has increased this year, with 186 cases to last year's 72. Five children have actually died because of the disease and experts are warning of a possible epidemic. According to The Guardian, There have been 2,466 confirmed cases between January and June, this is six times the figure for the previous outbreak in 2008. A whooping cough epidemic is seriously worrying and new measures are being put in place. Teenagers and pregnant women may have to be immunized. Over the last ten years, in England and Wales, 800 cases have been confirmed. Over 300 babies were admitted into hospital to be treated and four babies have died every year. In the very young, it can cause serious complications, but the complications get less, the older a person is. Mail reports, at Stathern Primary School, near Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, about 23 children have fallen ill with the disease. Health professionals visited the school and gave staff and children antibiotics to help prevent whooping cough .