Deadly whooping cough is spreading – here’s what you need to know

Ten babies have now died after being diagnosed with whooping cough , amid continuously high levels of cases across England.

The bacterial infection, also known as pertussis, affects the lungs and breathing tubes.

Whooping cough is sometimes called the “100-day cough” because of how long it can take to recover from it, and it spreads very easily.

While most cases were in those aged 15 years or older, more than 300 have been reported in babies under three months old who are at the greatest risk from the infection.

Confirmed cases in the second quarter, from April to June, exceeded those in any quarter of the last major whooping cough outbreak in 2012.

The current outbreak is thought to have began in November last year, with the first infant death confirmed in December.

Whooping cough symptoms

The first signs of whooping cough are similar to a cold and can include a runny nose and sore throat, but after about a week, the infection can develop into coughing bouts that last for a few minutes and are typically worse at night.

Young babies may also make a distinctive “whoop” or have difficulty breathing after a bout of coughing, though not all babies make this noise.

The majority of cases (55%) have been diagnosed among people aged 15 and over but the condition is most serious in babies.

Between January and June, 328 babies under the age of three months were diagnosed with whooping cough.

How many whooping cough cases have there been?

There were 10,493 confirmed cases reported between January and June in England this year, according to UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) figures.

Levels peaked in May when some 3,052 cases were reported. There were 555 cases recorded in January and 2,427 in June.

There were 858 cases for the whole of 2023.

Why are whooping cought cases so high?

Health officials at the UKHSA describe whooping cough as a “cyclical disease”, which means it peaks every few years. With whooping cough this peak usually occurs every three to five years. The last big increase was seen in 2016.

But cases dipped to very low numbers during the coronavirus pandemic – likely due to a lack of socialising and social distancing measures – which means the current peak is “overdue”, the UKHSA said.

It added the impact of the pandemic means there is “reduced immunity in the population”.

Vaccination rates have also decreased in recent years – the latest vaccination coverage figures for pregnant women in March was just 58.9%.

Whooping cough vaccine for pregnant women

Pregnant women are being urged to take up the offer of the whooping cough vaccine so they can pass on protection to their babies, which should last until they are old enough to get vaccinated themselves.

Evidence from health officials shows vaccination at the right time in pregnancy provides 92% protection against infant death.

Parents are also being advised to take up the offer of vaccination for children when called forward.

The NHS recommends all pregnant women are vaccinated against whooping cough between 16 and 32 weeks.

When a baby is eight-weeks-old they are offered the six-in-one vaccine, which includes immunisation against whooping cough.

The second dose of the vaccine is offered at 12 weeks and the third is offered at 16 weeks.

When children are three years and four-months-old they will be offered the four-in-one pre-school booster, which protects against pertussis.