Free Whooping Cough Booster Vaccines

As part of an ongoing effort to respond to a recent outbreak of pertussis, or whooping cough, the Haywood County Health Department will provide free booster vaccines to the public from 5 to 7 p.m., Thursday, March 26.

The Tdap booster vaccine will be available to residents between 10-64 years of age who have not received a booster in the last several years. It is recommended that adolescents and adults get the Tdap vaccine in place of the previously recommended tetanus and diphtheria (Td) boosters, especially if they have come into contact with infants under 12 months of age.

“There is no lifelong protection against whooping cough, and that is why we are providing the booster vaccine,” said Julia Plemmons, Director of Nursing for the Health Department. “The Tdap booster is now recommended at age 13, but if an adolescent or adult hasn’t been vaccinated against pertussis since 5 or 6 years old, we are recommending that they come in and get the booster vaccine.”

The vaccine will be administered at the health department, which is located at 2177 Asheville Rd. in Waynesville. Those interested in receiving the vaccine Thursday should call the health department at 452-6675 to schedule an appointment. The booster vaccine can also be administered at other times by appointment by contacting the health department between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Nine cases of pertussis have been confirmed in children and adults in Haywood County. Health department staff members have notified about 800 family members, friends and other persons who may have been exposed to pertussis through one of these confirmed cases, Plemmons said.

“We’re currently providing treatment to about 600 of the people we’ve contacted,” said Plemmons. “That doesn’t mean that they have contracted pertussis, but we have taken a proactive step to help prevent it from developing by getting them on a course of antibiotics.”

Pertussis is a serious, highly contagious respiratory infection that generally causes mild to moderate symptoms in adults, but may be fatal to infants. Pertussis is caused by Bordetella pertussis bacteria and affects the respiratory tract.

The disease is spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Persons with face to face contact have the greatest likelihood of contracting the disease. Initial symptoms are similar to a mild cold or dry cough that persists and becomes worse during a 1-2 week period. The cough can continue for a prolonged time, earning this disease the nickname “cough of 100 days.” Infected persons are contagious 7-10 days before the cough illness begins.

Symptoms of pertussis can include a cough lasting for at least two weeks and one of the following:

· “fits” of coughing,

· a “whooping” sound when taking in a breath; or

· vomiting immediately after coughing.

In adults, pertussis may never get any worse than a bad cough. However, the danger is that adults can pass it on to unprotected people, including infants too young to have begun their vaccinations, children who have not been vaccinated, and adults whose childhood vaccine no longer fully protects them.

Those showing symptoms of pertussis should contact their health care provider or the health department. While keeping vaccinations current is the best prevention against pertussis, antibiotics are typically prescribed as treatment for symptoms.

Persons are considered to not be contagious after five days of antibiotic treatment, Plemmons said. During that time, Plemmons urged those who are symptomatic to do all they can to limit their contact with the public.

Because pertussis is so easily spread, Plemmons is expecting to see the number of confirmed cases continue to climb for several more weeks. As a result, the health department has obtained an additional 1,000 doses of the vaccine.

For more information, or questions, please call the Haywood County Health Department at 828-452-6675. To learn more about the disease, visit the Centers for Disease Control website at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/default.htm .