FAIRFAX, Va. (7News) — The Fairfax County Health Department reports that cases of whooping cough disease, also known as pertussis, are on the rise in Fairfax, Virginia, and across the nation.
Whooping cough is a bacterial disease that spreads from person to person through the air, and health officials say it spreads easily when people spend long periods of time together or share the same spaces.
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Health officials said that whooping cough resembles the common cold, with symptoms including a runny nose, slight fever and a mild cough, followed by bouts of coughing that can last for weeks or months.
Officials said that during a coughing fit, people may experience symptoms such as:
Making a high-pitched whooshing sound when breathing in after a coughing fit. Vomiting during or after a coughing fit. Feeling tired after a coughing fit but seeming to have enough rest between fits. Having trouble sleeping at night. Having trouble breathing. Coughing so hard that you break a rib.
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To prevent whooping cough, officials recommend everyone get either the DTaP or Tdap vaccine.
Click here for more information on how to treat whooping cough and keep your loved ones safe.
