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New Drug-resistant Strain Of '100-day Cough' Strikes Kids & Poses Global Threat, Experts Warn
Since January health experts say whooping cough cases have risen in the UK and Europe resulting in the largest surge since 2012. The US also recorded a small number of cases impacting several states
Cases of the '100-day cough' were reported in Europe, Asia, and the US this year (Image: Getty Images)
Kids are at threat from a drug-resistant '100-day cough" which poses a threat to numerous places around the world.
The new strain of whooping cough has been discovered by health experts which is resistant to antibiotic treatment and vaccinations. Research, which has as not yet been peer-reviewed, says the disease which has mutated, poses a "global" health threat.
Known as the '100-day cough', cases were reported in Europe, Asia, and the US this year. And since January whooping cough cases have risen in the UK and Europe resulting in the largest surge since 2012. The US also recorded a small number of cases in New York City, San Francisco and Hawaii.
More than 15,000 cases were reported in January this year, which scientists say is a 15-fold increase compared to the same period last year. It is not uncommon for spikes of the condition - often sparked by either Bordetella pertussis or Bordetella parapertussis bacteria - to happen every three or four years.
More than 15,000 cases of whooping cough were reported in January this year (Image:
Getty Images/iStockphoto)The unusually high number of worldwide cases has weakened immunity among populations to allow it to evade vaccine-induced protection. Authors of the study said: "Pathogen evolution, rather than the widely accepted notion of waning immunity or 'immunity debt', is more likely the primary factor driving pertussis upsurge, age shift and vaccine escape."
A surge in a new strain of the virus called MR-MT28 has emerged in the country which is "uniquely capable of causing substantial infections among older children and vaccinated individuals". The virus is also resistant to antibiotics including azithromycin, clarithromycin, and erythromycin
Samples of the disease from patients who ere admitted to the Children's Hospital of Fudan University (CHFU), in Shanghai, with whooping cough between June 2016 and March 2024. An estimated 88% of people were vaccinated this year compared to just 31 % who contracted the illness in previous years. Whooping cough usually affects younger children, but the new study found 84% who caught the bug in 2024 were older children.
Whooping cough usually affects younger children (Image:
Getty Images)The Mirror reported last month how parents were sent whooping cough warning letters by the government amid a rise in cases of the illness which can last for months. The letter, sent by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), warned of an increase in cases of the problem, also known as pertussis, in children across the regions of Lincolnshire and the East Midlands.
Symptoms can include a cough lasting several weeks following initial cold-like symptoms, prolonged bouts of coughing, post-coughing retching or vomiting a 'whoop' sound on breathing in and rib pain. In the letter, the UKHSA gave advice to parents in the letter for if their child experiences any symptoms
It reads: "If your child has any of the symptoms described above, we advise you to seek medical advice from a GP and take along this letter. Your GP may then arrange to test for whooping cough."
Symptoms And Signs Of Whooping Cough In Adults
Whooping cough gets its name from its most famous symptom – a "whoop" sound you might make when you gasp for air at the end of a coughing fit. But it doesn't happen in all adults, so it's important to learn the range of symptoms you might get – from a runny nose to a hacking cough that you can't seem to shake.
Whooping cough is marked by a telltale whoop sound after a coughing fit. (Photo credit: iStock/Getty Images)
At first, whooping cough – also called pertussis – might seem like a regular, run-of-the mill cold, which is why doctors often don't diagnose it as whooping cough right away. It may take 5-10 days after contact with the whooping cough bacteria to have any symptoms. It could even take as long as 3 weeks. Symptoms are divided between early and late stages.
Early whooping cough symptoms
These mimic a common cold and include:
Those problems often last a week or two, but the similarities with a cold end there. Most common colds wrap up in less than 2 weeks, but whooping cough will start to get worse.
As soon as you suspect you might have whooping cough – or any time you have cold-like symptoms that don't get better in a few weeks – see your doctor.
Peak whooping cough symptoms
Two weeks on, if you have whooping cough, you might:
Your cough might keep you up at night. The fits could be so severe that you may end up turning blue from lack of oxygen. You could even break a rib during a coughing fit.
Whooping cough symptoms in adults vs. Kids
Babies and small children often have more serious cases of whooping cough than teens and adults. But they may not have the telltale "whooping" cough or any cough at all. Symptoms of whooping cough in babies and young kids usually include:
Adults and teenagers with whooping cough will have the long coughing fits with the high-pitched whooping sound at the end, mostly if they haven't been vaccinated. If they've been vaccinated against whooping cough, their symptoms should be milder.
To make a diagnosis, your doctor will listen to your cough and ask questions about your symptoms. In some cases -- such as when it's hard to figure out if it's whooping cough, the flu, or bronchitis -- you might need tests. Those often include a nose or throat culture. Your doctor will take a mucus sample and send it to a lab. Technicians will test it to see if it contains the bacteria that causes whooping cough.
Your doctor may also suggest blood tests to check your white blood cell count, a general sign of infection. They might ask you to get a chest X-ray to see if you have inflammation or fluid in your lungs that are signs of pneumonia, a complication of whooping cough.
See a doctor if you don't have symptoms but have been in contact with someone else who has whooping cough. You might need to take medication that can help fight the disease in case you catch it. This needs to be taken before the third week of illness is over, because the bacteria has usually left the body after that.
Treatment for whooping cough includes:
If whooping cough becomes very serious, you may need to go to a hospital, but this is rare.
Whooping cough vs. Croup
Whooping cough is similar to croup in that both illnesses are infections affecting the respiratory tract, the system related to breathing and your lungs. Both also have distinctive coughs and are spread by breathing in infected droplets when someone with the disease coughs or sneezes.
A big difference between the two is that whooping cough is caused by a bacteria and there is a vaccination to prevent it. Croup is caused by a virus and there is no vaccination for it. Antibiotics can be given for whooping cough, but for croup, there is no specific medicine. Croup is a swelling of your larynx (voice box) and trachea (windpipe). This condition mainly affects babies and kids under 3, because as they get older, kids' windpipes get larger, so they can breathe even if there is some swelling.
Symptoms of croup include:
After you get a diagnosis of whooping cough, your doctor will likely treat you with antibiotics. It might take 2 to 3 weeks for you to recover, during which time you will cough less, though you'll still have some bouts of coughing.
You might also have higher chances of getting a respiratory infection for several months. People sometimes call whooping cough the "100-day cough" because it lingers so long.
Whooping cough is considered mainly a childhood disease, but adults can get it too. It gets its name from the "whoop" sound you might make when you gasp for air at the end of a coughing fit. Treatment involves taking antibiotics, using a humidifier, and keeping the home free of pollutants that might trigger a coughing episode.
How do you know if your cough is whooping cough?
It may not be obvious during the first week or two. You might think you have an ordinary cold and cough. But during the second week, you may get a coughing fit with a whooping sound at the end of it.
Will whooping cough go away by itself?
Yes, but it might take weeks or months for this to happen. The bacteria itself will be gone after the third week, but the symptoms will continue to linger for a long time.
What are the three stages of whooping cough?
The three stages are: the catarrhal phase, the paroxysmal phase, and the convalescent phase. The catarrhal phase is when you have early symptoms of whooping cough that mimic the common cold. The paroxysmal phase is when you make the telltale "whoop" sound while coughing. The convalescent phase is the recovery period when the coughing lessens but continues for weeks or months.
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