Whooping cough patients have increased by a staggering 183 times... The reason behind the 'crazy trend'

Whooping cough is said to be spreading globally this year.

A few weeks ago, whooping cough was also prevalent at the local middle school, and I received an official school notice about it.

Although the fatality rate is high or not closely related to the mortality rate...

It is said to be a disease that affects infants, young children, and adolescents frequently.

If you have these symptoms, it is important to diagnose and treat them quickly.

 

 

 

The 43rd-week patients, who were 9 last year, increased to 1,651 this year...

70% of adolescents aged 10 to 19 are affected worldwide, partly due to increased testing and school policies.

 

Whooping cough, which has been named after the severe cough symptoms lasting for 100 days, is continuing an unprecedented outbreak.

In the past week alone, a total of 1,651 patients have been reported, which is 183 times higher than the same period last year. The quarantine authorities have warned that an unprecedented outbreak is expected to continue for the time being and urged people to seek prompt diagnosis and treatment if symptoms appear.

According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on the 1st, the number of whooping cough cases for the 43rd week (October 20-26) was 1,651. This is a slight increase from the previous week’s 1,558 cases. After peaking at 3,379 cases in the 29th week in mid-July, whooping cough has been showing a resurgence since the end of September.

Just by looking at the trend of this year's outbreak, it may not be obvious how many patients there are, but compared to previous years, it is clear that this year has shown an unprecedented level of outbreak.

Last year, the number of whooping cough patients in the 43rd week was 9, representing an 183-fold increase this year. This is 78 times higher than the 21 cases reported in the 43rd week of 2018, which was the most significant outbreak before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pertaining to different age groups, whooping cough appears to be particularly prevalent among adolescents.

In the case of 43 weeks, 10 to 19-year-olds accounted for 1,096 people, approximately 66.3% of the total (1,651 people), followed by 0 to 9-year-olds at 22.2% (368 people), and 40 to 49-year-olds at 2.8% (47 people).

 

Number of whooping cough cases by year. (Provided by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency) © News1

 

Whooping cough is currently classified as a second-class legally notifiable infectious disease along with hepatitis A, tuberculosis, chickenpox, typhoid fever, and cholera.

When infected with whooping cough, initial symptoms include mild upper respiratory infection signs such as runny nose, conjunctivitis, tears, mild cough, and fever. As the cough gradually worsens and progresses to the middle stage, symptoms such as apnea, cyanosis, nosebleeds, subdural hemorrhage, and lower eyelid swelling may appear. These symptoms last for about 1 to 2 weeks.

However, in our country, the pertussis vaccine is part of the national immunization program, with six doses administered up to age 12, resulting in low severity and mortality rates. However, for infants under one year old, the mortality rate is high, so caution is needed regarding infection.

According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the recent unprecedented outbreak of whooping cough is also related to global trends. Whooping cough tends to occur in cycles of 3 to 5 years, and it is explained that it was quiet during the COVID-19 pandemic period but has exploded in cases this year.

A representative from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency explained, "Whooping cough is spreading globally, and in Australia, which has a smaller population than our country, there are currently more cases than in Korea, and the number of cases in the UK has also increased significantly." He added, "If we consider the epidemic cycle, it should have peaked and passed in 2020, but because it did not, it has suddenly surged."

However, there are also factors that make it appear as though the number of patients has increased, in addition to the actual rise in patient numbers.

This official stated, "Since PCR testing became widespread after COVID-19, and because symptoms appear and insurance claims are processed, the number of detections has increased as people get tested immediately," adding, "Especially among adolescents, schools have strengthened infection control through the 'School Infectious Disease Prevention and Response Manual,' so even mild symptoms lead to not attending school and getting tested, which is why there are notably many adolescent cases."

He added, "The increase in tests has led to more diagnoses, but there have still been no deaths so far," and explained, "In the past, we mainly tested only those with severe symptoms, but now, because diagnoses are made quickly even when symptoms are mild, that is why."

However, some argue that the so-called "pseudo whooping cough," which is detected as Bordetella pertussis infection in tests but is not actually whooping cough, accounts for 40-60%, leading to excessive anxiety and fear. In response, a representative from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency stated, "We have used the same testing method in the past, and since the tests are conducted according to global standards, it is not a variable factor contributing to the increase in patient numbers this year."

Whooping cough is a respiratory infectious disease caused by Bordetella pertussis bacteria, and diagnosis is made by detecting the 'IS481' gene through PCR testing. However, the problem is that the same gene is also found in related species that are not B. pertussis. Additionally, Homzae bacteria are also diagnosed as whooping cough when tested with PCR.

In response, the official said, "There's nothing we can do about this," and added, "While further analysis could distinguish the details, additional analysis has lower sensitivity, so there are pros and cons."

He added, "For cases like home Zai bacteria that require treatment, since they are treated with antibiotics similar to whooping cough, we decided that it would be more appropriate to keep the reporting criteria unchanged and to manage them broadly."

Meanwhile, they warned that if the number of patients increases too much, there is a higher risk of infection among the vulnerable age group of infants, and urged that if symptoms appear, diagnosis and treatment should be carried out quickly to prevent further spread.

<Source: News One>