Whooping Cough Epidemic Hits California

(June 24) -- California health officials report whooping cough has reached an epidemic level in the state, with five babies dying of the highly contagious disease and a surge in the number of infections on pace to break a 50-year record.

The state Department of Health announced that 910 cases of whooping cough -- or pertussis -- have been reported as of June 15, compared with 219 cases during the same period last year, reports said.

Local health departments are investigating an additional 600 cases, putting the number of known and suspected cases at 1,510. That's a higher number than the 1,200 cases confirmed midway through 1958, which ended up with a record 3,847 cases by the end of the year, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The five pertussis-related deaths in California were all infants under the age of 3 months, according to Los Angeles' KTLA-TV, prompting doctors to urge parents and infant caregivers to take precautions.

"Children should be vaccinated against the disease, and parents, family members and caregivers of infants need a booster shot," the California Department of Public Health's director, Dr. Mark Horton, said Wednesday.

While children are vaccinated against whooping cough before kindergarten, the vaccinations do not provide lifetime immunity. According to the California Department of Public Health, whooping cough diagnoses are often delayed or missed due to "deceivingly mild" early signs like runny nose and light coughing. Untreated pertussis will eventually lead to respiratory distress and a high white blood cell count.