Whooping cough cases on the rise in Ontario

Public health units in central Ontario have issued warnings about rising cases. Whooping cough — or whooping cough.

The Haliburton and Kawartha Pine Ridge District Health Unit issued a warning earlier this week about rising case numbers. Whooping cough Working within school communities. The health unit serves Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland and Haliburton counties.

Marianne Lock, infectious disease prevention and control officer at the HKPR, advises monitoring children for symptoms such as a runny nose and slight fever, but within a few days they may start to have a severe cough and the characteristic whooshing sound.

“We are finding that there are a large number of children presenting with whooping cough symptoms,” she said.

Health officials say those most at risk are infants under 1 year old and pregnant women in the third trimester of pregnancy. If you are infected or experience symptoms, you should contact your health care provider immediately for further testing.

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Between January and May 2024, 70 cases of whooping cough were reported across the province, according to Public Health Ontario.

Cases have risen steadily over the past three years, from 16 cases reported in 2021 to 159 in 2022 and 333 in 2023.

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Some epidemiologists believe delays in childhood vaccinations, in part due to clinic closures at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, are to blame for the surge in cases.

“COVID-19 has been a huge disruptor for a lot of people for a variety of reasons,” said Dr. Christopher Labos, a cardiologist with a degree in epidemiology from McGill University.

“But most importantly, many parents with young children were unable to attend regular follow-up appointments.”

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Labos said the most effective defense against whooping cough is vaccination.

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“We don't want to see an increase in preventable diseases,” he said. “We want to suppress disease, and one of the best ways to do that is to keep vaccination rates high.”

But some experts say the lack of vaccination coverage could also be due to widespread misinformation about the vaccine.

“This was linked to COVID vaccination,” said Zahid Butt, an infectious disease epidemiologist and assistant professor at the University of Waterloo.

“Conspiracy theories have spread and vaccine hesitancy has increased overall.”

Butt noted that while the disease has not impacted hospital treatment, whooping cough is highly contagious.

“When you get infected, it can affect 15 to 17 people who are susceptible to that particular disease,” he said. “That's how contagious this disease is.”

Adults should also check their vaccination status and get a booster shot if necessary.

“The immunity provided by this vaccine fades over time, so it is always good to get a booster shot,” Bhatt said.

— With files from Jermaine Ma/Global News Peterborough

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