A-Z of Illnesses
Whooping Cough or Pertussis
What is it?
Whooping cough is an infection which is spread from person to person. It starts with a runny nose and then leads to a special cough which can really get in the way of breathing and sounds like 'whoop'. It often makes you sick at the same time.
The cough can go on for months.
Most of us avoid it with a vaccination when we are babies.
Treatment
Call your doctor. They will offer you special medicines called antibiotics.
It can be very serious and babies and toddlers often have to go to hospital.
How do you catch it?
This is a very infectious disease spread by coughing, sneezing and contact with other people's snot!
It takes 7 to 10 days to start. You should stay away from school for five days after you start taking antibiotic medicine or 21 days after the coughing starts if you don't use the antibiotic medicine.
Most babies are vaccinated against whooping cough.
