SASKATOON – The Saskatoon Health Region (SHR) declared a whooping cough outbreak Thursday. There have been 61 confirmed cases so far this year across the region.
There are typically 10 cases annually in SHR and 20 to 30 province-wide.
There have been three clusters of intense activity from August until Thursday. Humboldt, Muenster and St. Gregor have had been the most active in the health region but cases have popped up in other areas.
Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is a highly contagious respiratory infection caused by bacteria. It’s spread through direct contact of droplets from the nose and throat of an infected person.
Often times parents have fallen behind in the series of immunizations their child is scheduled to receive but the majority of cases have been seen in adults who could then potentially spread the disease to infants and children.
“How many of our adults go for an annual physical so maybe that’s a place to start. This is good, preventative health medicine and this is the time to talk to your doctor, review your vaccine status and catch up on anything that has not been done,” said Dr. Johnmark Opondo, the region’s deputy medical health officer.
According to Opondo, if you are due for the 10-year tetanus booster then ask for a shot that also protects you from pertussis. For more information on your immunization records, call 306-655-4090.
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Officials are also encouraging parents to get their infants vaccinated.
“Pertussis is a very serious disease in infants under 12 months of age,” Opondo.
“It can lead to breathing difficulties, hospitalization and sometimes death, even with treatment.”
Health officials recommend that pregnant women, between 26 and 36 weeks of pregnancy, get immunized with Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) if they have never received it as adults. Meanwhile, women living in the region can receive the vaccine in their third trimester irrespective of whether they have received Tdap in the past.
Pregnant women who get vaccinated transfer their antibodies to their unborn children which helps protect the baby before they can be vaccinated.
Officials say they are also starting to introduce a prenatal immunization program for pregnant women in their third trimester.
SHR says vaccination is the best way to prevent whooping cough and is given to children at two, four, six and 15 to 18 months of age.
Meaghan Craig contributed to this story
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