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Whooping cough – Every
mother’s nightmare, having said that regardless
of any illness a child suffers will cause any
parent to worry. No mom wants to see her child
ill because they feel helpless at times like
this. However we have doctors to help make baby
better.
Whooping cough known medically
as pertussis — is a highly contagious
respiratory tract infection. I know sounds
scary but most medical terms referring to
different ailments usually are. Although
Whooping cough initially is similar to that of
the common cold, whooping cough can turn more
serious particularly in infants. Listening to a
child with full bore coughing bouts is not very
nice and less so for the discomfort caused to
the ailing child. In the more advanced stages
Whooping cough is marked by a severe hacking
cough followed by a high-pitched intake of
breath that sounds like "whoop."
The incidence of whooping
cough has been increasing, primarily among
children too young to have completed the full
course of vaccinations and teenagers whose
immunity has faded.
With
appropriate treatment, adolescents and
grownups recover from whooping cough
without complications. As with all
conditions we have the mild and the not
so mild parts. With Whooping cough it can
be more serious in babies younger than 6
months of age.
If an adult
or baby is infected with the bacterium
that causes whooping cough, it takes
about three to 12 days for signs and
symptoms to appear. They usually start
off mild and quite often confused with
the symptoms of a cold.
Symptoms normally
include:
As
the condition progresses so do the symptoms
worsen. These may include
1
Severe coughing attacks and producing thick
phlegm
2 Repetitive
coughing attacks — up to fifteen in a
row
3 In kiddies,
severe coughing that leads to vomiting and
noticeable signs of the face reddening or
turning blue
4 Tiredness from
coughing
In grownups
symptoms of whooping cough can appear like that
of bronchitis, a respiratory infection that
causes a nagging cough. Severe bouts of
coughing can result in tiny red spots caused by
ruptures in blood vessels at the skin's surface
(petechiae) in the upper body, as well as small
regions of bleeding in the whites of the eyes.
Nevertheless you can suffer from an ordinary
cough and still have blood vessels
burst.
You may even
bruise or break a rib if your coughing episodes
are severe. Coughing may be worse at night. You
may not feel a rib break however, you will
definitely feel it. Have your GP check you over
if you have severe pain from the
ribcage.
If your baby who you
know best shows signs that they are not
well even without coughing, still have
your doctor examine the child. We have
many diseases connected to young children
like chicken pox measles mumps and
meningitis. Get the all clear for your
baby so he she does not suffer from
something that you as their mother might
believe is a condition that can be
treated with over
the counter
medication.
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