Symptoms And Treatment Of Whooping Cough In Children

What is whooping cough?

Whooping cough is a contagious disease of the respiratory tract. The cause is a bacteria (bordetella pertussis). The disease occurs mainly in children up to fourteen years.

Whooping cough starts as a common cold. But after one or two weeks the child receives a violent coughing fits. If the child breathe does that sound likely beeping or whooping. Cough drinks are not the solution for these coughing fits. Sometimes the coughing so much that children with whooping cough to surrender or turn blue. It takes six to twelve weeks before the symptoms are gone.

What is the treatment for whooping cough?
There is no treatment for whooping cough. The doctor may prescribe antibiotics, but the disease is thereby no less serious. Make the disease antibiotics only less infectious to others.
Someone who has had whooping cough can get the disease again.

Whooping cough is very contagious. After infection with the bacterium does it take one to three weeks before a child gets sick.
Most children are vaccinated against whooping cough (DPT + POLIO-vaccination). If a child still whooping cough, it is less severe.

Is whooping cough contagious?

Whooping cough is very contagious. The bacteria comes through coughing, talking and sneezing into the air. Someone who breathes the air with bacteria become infected.

Usually infect children with whooping cough other children in the first three weeks of illness. In the first three weeks of the whooping cough seems to colds. The child therefore already infected other children before the parents know it has whooping cough. Once it is clear that a child has whooping cough, the others can often no longer infect. Therefore, a child who has whooping cough, after consultation with the GP, just to kindergarten or school. Keeping home does not help to prevent the spread of the disease.
What does help prevent the spread?

1. Children need their hand when they cough or hold a handkerchief over the mouth.
2. Children should wash their hands often.
3. Children with pertussis who take antibiotics are less contagious than children who take antibiotics.

Vaccination is the best protection against whooping cough. People who do not have any vaccinations against whooping cough, run a greater risk of becoming ill. Especially (new born) babies are vulnerable. Your baby has not had any vaccinations? Then your baby may not come into contact with children who have whooping cough. If there is at school or daycare whooping cough, you can not bring your baby so better go.
When a child with whooping cough near a young baby has been, it is very important that the baby's parents know.

What are the signs and symptoms of whooping cough?

Pertussis usually starts with a runny nose and cough. One to two weeks later, the cough worse. The child then gets violent coughing, sometimes with a screeching inhalation. In most children, the coughing at night the worst. The child cough up mucus and tough glassy must sometimes vomiting. The child may get anxious. This second phase lasts about six weeks.
Then renovate children slowly. The cough will be less severe and eventually disappear. Occasionally the child gets maybe a cough, for example during a cold or a sudden change from heat to cold.
Almost everyone who gets whooping cough, is automatically better again. Only very young children sometimes have to go to the hospital. The coughing fits can the child because so exhausting that it has no strength to drink. The child can then dehydrate.
Even babies with whooping cough may have to go to the hospital. They can get whooping cough from the other problems, such as pneumonia or lack of oxygen at a coughing attack. Lack of oxygen can lead to brain damage.