Several countries are facing an increase in cases of whooping cough in babies. In France, the figures remain stable, but this could increase.
- In the United Kingdom and the United States, cases of whooping cough are increasing sharply.
- In France, they are stable for the moment.
- But health professionals believe that an increase in cases is possible.
Cases of whooping cough are increasing in the United Kingdom and the United States. In Florida, the health authorities observed an 85% increase in cases between July and December 2023, compared to the previous year. According to Tea Guardianmore than 1,100 cases were recorded in England and Wales from January to November 2023: 450 were recorded over the same period in 2022.
Whooping cough: how to explain the increase in cases in the United States and the United Kingdom?
For various specialists, the increase in cases of whooping cough could be a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic. “Social distancing and lockdown measures imposed across the UK during the Covid-19 pandemic have had a significant impact on the spread of infections, including whooping cough.estimates Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, consultant epidemiologist at The UK Health Security Agency, in Tea Guardian. However, this reduction in the circulation of the disease reduced the number of immunized people, which may have facilitated its current spread.
Could France face an increase in whooping cough cases?
In France, health professionals are carefully monitoring the situation, “like milk on the fire”even specifies Professor Sylvain Brisse, director of the National Reference Center for Whooping Cough, at BFM TV. For the moment, no worrying increase has been noted; on the contrary, the number of cases is rather stable compared to previous years. But we could have the same effects as in the United Kingdom and the United States. HAS BFM TVAndréas Werner, pediatrician and president of the French Association of Ambulatory Pediatrics, speaks about the “debt immunological” associated with Covid-19. Our low exposure to the bacteria that causes whooping cough reduces our average antibody levels. “Not being exposed to a gene increases the risk of catching the disease later.he elaborates.
Whooping cough: how to protect yourself from the disease?
This bacterial disease is mainly transmitted through the air, when a person is in contact with an infected individual. This may be particularly because of cough, the main symptom of the disease: sick people cough for a long time after infection, which gave rise to the nickname whooping cough, “the 100 day cough”.
The main protection against the disease is vaccination. It has been widespread in France since 1966, but Ministry of Health specifies that “the bacteria continues to circulate because the vaccine, like the disease, does not protect for life”. It is recommended to vaccinate infants at two months, then to carry out the various boosters during childhood and at 25 years of age. “The current challenge is in particular to avoid cases of whooping cough in infants under 6 months of age, those most at risk of serious whooping cough.recalls the ministry. These infants are most often contaminated by an adult close to them, one of the parents in 50% of cases.
