Pertussis, a highly contagious disease of the respiratory tract, is caused by exposure to bacteria (Bordetella pertussis) found in the mouth, nose and throat of an infected person. Pertussis is primarily spread by direct contact with discharge from the nose or throat of infected individuals. Classic - or severe pertussis - as defined by the World Health Organization, consists of at least 21 days of cough illness (with the cough coming in spasms or paroxysms), associated whoops or post-cough vomiting, and laboratory confirmation. Despite widespread vaccination, reports of pertussis continue to rise in the U.S. At particular risk are newborns and babies who have not yet been fully vaccinated against pertussis, who are more likely to have severe pertussis, and who face the possibility of serious complications and death. Over the last decade, 80% of pertussis deaths have occurred in infants under 6 months of age.
The US Supreme Court is seemingly divided over the lawsuits on childhood vaccines. The Justices acquiesced that the Congress has done its bit to shield vaccine-makers from suits by the few who have had an adverse reaction to a vaccine approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Now the matter revolves around whether those hurt by vaccines have the right to sue manufacturers if they can prove that a safer version was available.
After the recent deaths of two children at Western Australia's rural Northam Hospital, there are calls for an inquiry.
Whooping cough is on the rise in California and the number infected has reached a 55-year high, including nine infant deaths, eight of them Hispanics. There have been more than 4,000 confirmed, probable or suspected cases this year, the most reported since 1955.
With Children Back in School, Doctors Clear up Confusion and Demonstrate the True Impact of Vaccination
In light of today's report of the National Immunization Survey results, the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine (SAHM) encourages increased efforts in fully immunizing all adolescents.
Childhood immunizations keep our children safe from a number of serious diseases. This is a good time of year to make sure your child is up-to-date on all of his/her immunizations. Continue reading to find out which vaccines the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend for children 6 and under.
A Bangalow, NSW based group known as the Australian Vaccination Network (AVN) had earlier maligned the nation’s immunization campaign calling vaccines unsafe on their website. The New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission had then issued a warning to them to include a disclaimer that the contents of the sites webpages should not be taken as medical advice. AVN failed to heed to the warnings and now the HCCC has issued a safety warning against the group.
Hundreds of thousands of cell phone users have made $10 donations to the American Red Cross Haiti Relief and Development Fund by sending the word "Haiti" to 90999, raising a record-shattering $32 million in mobile giving for the ongoing relief efforts.
Vaccination programs against whooping cough may not be fully effective because the bacteria that cause the disease have evolved new strains, a new study has found.
More teenagers are being vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV), meningococcal meningitis and pertussis (whooping cough), though the rates are still too low, according to recently released government data and a panel of experts convened by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID).
Health officials on the North Coast of New South Wales say there is now an epidemic of whooping cough in the region and they are advising young children and those who have close contact with them to be vaccinated.
Queensland Health authorities say there has been a surge in the number of whooping cough cases in far north Queensland - according to health officials there have been 205 cases of the disease in the state's far north already this year, seven times higher than the same time last year and Dr. Steven Donohue at the Tropical Population Health Service is warning parents to have their children immunised.
Researchers long ago rejected the theory that vaccines cause autism, yet many parents don't believe them. Can scientists bridge the gap between evidence and doubt?
Children of parents who refuse vaccines are 23 times more likely to get whooping cough compared to fully immunized children, according to a new study led by a vaccine research team at Kaiser Permanente Colorado's Institute for Health Research.
Physicians and nurses need to explain the risks of vaccine refusal while respectfully listening to parents' concerns, a special article in the May 7 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine urges.
A "5-in-1" combination vaccine increases the percentage of children receiving all recommended vaccinations at the scheduled time, reports a study in the February issue of The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal.
Scientists have identified the structure of a key component of the bacteria behind such diseases as whooping cough, peptic stomach ulcers and Legionnaires' disease.
Mayo Clinic research shows adults with asthma are at increased risk of serious pneumococcal disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, the most common bacteria causing middle ear infections and community acquired pneumonia.
A booster vaccination for parents of new babies and other household members may be the most effective way of preventing the fatal form of whooping cough in young infants, say a group of paediatric intensive care doctors on bmj.com.
The American College of Physicians (ACP) and the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) have released a joint statement on the importance of adult vaccination against an increasing number of vaccine-preventable diseases.
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