Cut to Zero
Pertussis or as it`s better known, whooping cough is a bacterial illness spread very much like a cold through coughing and sneezing. It is highly contagious and is usually identified by an uncontrollable and violent cough that begins with cold-like symptoms but advances into episodes of severe coughing. It can occur at any age, but the highest risk accompanies children who are too young to be fully vaccinated or have not yet completed the primary vaccination series. The first outbreaks recorded of whooping cough were reported in the 16th century though the bacterium that is responsible for the illness (Bordetella pertussis) was not identifiable till 1906 and a vaccine was not introduced until the 1940`s.
Since the 80`s the amount of cases of whooping cough in the United States have been gradually increasing. Though treatable, it is a communicable disease and unlike chicken pox previous infection does not make you immune to getting the infection again. California officials announced Tuesday that they cut the cases of Pertussis by approximately two thirds from 9,000 cases seen in 2010 to less than 3,000 in 2011. You may recall that in 2010 10 babies died of whooping cough sparking a public outcry for better vaccines and more awareness of this illness that infects as many as 48.5 million people worldwide on an annual basis.