Pertussis, or whooping cough, has been on the rise in Texas, prompting physicians to urge parents to get their children vaccinated, according to East Texas Matters.
"The cough is exhausting, but in young babies, it can be very serious, causing them to stop breathing, to turn blue, causing pneumonia, seizures, or even death," Catherine Mary Healy, MD, pediatric physician at Houston-based Texas Children's Hospital, told East Texas Matters.
In 2013, there were about 4000 whooping cough cases reported in Texas, according to the CDC. FIve infants died from exacerbated pertussis symptoms.
"The best way to protect young babies from whooping cough is for their mothers to get a booster vaccine called Tdap during pregnancy," Dr. Healy told East Texas Matters.
Babies have to be 18 months of age before being vaccinated, according to the CDC. Until that point, babies should not be in contact with people who have not been vaccinated.
"Pertussis, or whooping cough, causes severe coughing fits that can last for 100 days," Dr. Healy told East Texas Matters. "Of course, everyone needs to be up to date on their whooping cough vaccines."
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