Signs to recognize whooping cough parents need to know

Pertussis is often severe, easily fatal due to multiple infections. In the face of increased cases, the Ministry of Health has issued an official request to prevent this disease.

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long signed an official dispatch requesting medical departments to strengthen prevention and control of whooping cough while strengthening supervision and review of vaccination for pertussis.

The Ministry of Health also requires active supervision, testing, early detection of cases, timely isolation, no outbreaks; implementing preventive hygiene activities at educational institutions, schools and kindergartens to prevent the risk of disease transmission.

Associate Prof. Dr. Tran Minh Dien - Deputy Director of the National Hospital of Pediatrics - said that as of the beginning of March, the hospital received more than 50 children with pertussis. This number is much higher than the same period of the previous years.

In particular, many children are hospitalized with severe complications, have dialysis and use ecmo techniques (oxygen exchange through the outer membrane) . The hospital has recorded 4 deaths due to severe complications.

Young is sick at the National Hospital of Pediatrics.(Photo: Duong Hai).

Associate Professor Tran Minh Dien, National Hospital of Pediatrics, proposed to the Ministry of Health to introduce pertussis vaccine into the vaccination program for pregnant mothers to increase community immunity, protect postpartum children after delivery. Mother's antibody.

Dr. Nguyen Van Lam - Head of Infectious Diseases (National Hospital of Pediatrics) - also said that the majority of children admitted to the hospital were not vaccinated or vaccinated but not enough nose. Young children, weak resistance, so the treatment process will take longer.

Dr. Lam also warned many children without obvious symptoms, parents often confused between whooping cough and some other diseases. Therefore, when detecting children have very serious complications.

Whooping cough is an acute respiratory infection, usually in young children. The disease is transmitted by direct respiratory exposure with secretions from the nasal mucosa of the patient when coughing or sneezing. The disease is highly contagious, especially for people living in a long closed space like households, schools .

Some signs of whooping cough:

• The onset of the disease may be fever-free or mild fever, with upper respiratory tract inflammation, fatigue, loss of appetite and cough.
• A whooping cough is very characteristic, showing that the child is coughing and unable to hold back, then the period of hissing is like the sound of crowing.
• At the end of the cough, the patient often has a lot of phlegm throughout and then vomiting.
• The disease is often severe, easy to die due to superinfection, causing complications of pneumonia, bronchitis - lungs, especially in children under 5 years old and malnourished children.