WATAUGA COUNTY, N.C. -- AppHealthCare reported two cases of pertussis, also known as whooping cough, have been confirmed within the last week in Watauga County.
On February 7, a Watauga High School student was confirmed to have whooping cough. On February 10, the health department became aware of a confirmed case of a student attending Cove Creek Elementary School.
According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Watauga County only saw two cases of whooping cough in all of 2017.
Dr. Marc Chester, a pediatric pulmonologist with Novant Health, said whooping cough is a bacteria that most children are vaccinated for at a young age. That's why it comes as a surprise when there’s an uptick in cases.
Pertussis is a concern because it can affect patients of all ages, but especially children and infants. Chester said it can cause milder cold symptoms like cough and congestion in infants, in addition to fits of coughing with a ‘whoop’ in between.
With flu season in full swing across the Carolinas, Chester said it can be hard for parents to distinguish between whooping cough and the flu which has similar symptoms.
“We don’t expect parents to be able to differentiate those out from any other cough and cold because we are in the middle of winter,” Chester said. “We are in the middle of flu season.”
Chester said it’s important for parents to make sure their children see a doctor if they have the symptoms of cough, congestion, and fever to be able to treat it early, no matter what the diagnosis is.
“Cough, congestion, fever: you’re going to want to bring them in and get them checked out because the therapy is antibiotics,” Chester said.
There are some atypical presentations of the disease, such as apnea or an acute, harsh cough, but Chester said early treatment can prevent more serious symptoms from developing.
Chester added it’s important for families to make sure immunizations are up-to-date, because that's the best line of defense against whooping cough.