Whooping cough wave hospitalizing Spokane kids has already surpassed 2015 outbreak

Spokane kids are getting sick from whooping cough, and health officials warn the outbreak will likely last into the spring.

As of Friday, 140 cases of whooping cough, also called pertussis, have been reported in Spokane County this year. There were none last year.

In just three days from when the Spokane Regional Health district first announced the outbreak, another 17 cases had been reported. And the outbreak is not expected to slow down anytime soon, according to SRHD epidemiologist Mark Springer.

“When we’ve had these pertussis waves, they last six or nine months. Maybe a year,” he said. “We believe we are going to see significant numbers like we’re seeing now at least through the winter months and early spring.”

So far, six kids have been hospitalized from the outbreak. The most severe symptoms of pertussis are seen in children, especially in the youngest. While symptoms can be a very mild cough for adults, the whooping cough has the potential to do real damage to children.

Spokane’s outbreak is part of a nationwide wave cresting in the Pacific Northwest. Washington state has reported 1,252 cases so far this year, compared with only 54 cases in all of 2023. Nationwide data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows more than five times the number of cases have been reported this year compared with 2023.

The Panhandle Health District, which oversees five counties in North Idaho, has seen even more cases this year than Spokane County. As of Friday, 297 cases of whooping cough have been reported in those Idaho counties. Between 2022 and 2023, only five cases of the disease were recorded. There have been three reported hospitalizations of children related to whooping cough in North Idaho.

Panhandle Health spokesperson Kate Hoyer said the health district first saw whooping cough cases in March and is “expecting to see many more cases.”

The area last saw a similar wave of whooping cough in 2015 when there were more than 1,200 cases across Washington state. That metric has already been surpassed in the state this year.

According to local and state health officials, the best way to slow the spread of whooping cough is to make sure kids are vaccinated – and maybe more importantly, to get a booster yourself.

“To protect babies from whooping cough, people of all ages should get up to date on pertussis vaccination, and anyone with symptoms should see a health care provider to see if testing and antibiotic treatment are needed,” said DOH Chief Science Officer Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett.

The DTaP vaccine protects those who receive it from whooping cough, diphtheria and tetanus. Over their childhood, kids should receive at least six doses of DTaP. But adults should get the vaccine every 10 years and during each pregnancy.

Springer said many adults do not know or forget to get a TDaP, as the booster is called. When they do, it is often because of concern over the other diseases treated by the vaccine.

“This is not as much an issue of vaccine hesitancy as it is an issue of awareness,” Springer said. “It isn’t often you are prompted in adult life to get a DTaP. But when you are, it is often because of a wound that prompts concern over tetanus. Awareness of pertussis is often not the driver.”

As immunity wanes in the adult population, the risk of a wave of whooping cough disproportionately impacting children increases. The best way for adults to protect kids from the outbreak is to check their vaccination status and get a booster if it has been more than 10 years since the last one, Springer said.

“If we had a significant uptake of vaccine in adults, that’s going to blunt things and decrease the duration of the outbreak,” Springer said.

Immunizations done in Washington are tracked by the Washington State Immunization Registry. Individuals can access this record by making an account at myirmobile.com.

DTaP and TDaP are routine vaccinations typically covered by insurance and administered by primary care providers and some pharmacies.

Springer also recommends adults with a prolonged mild cough seek whooping cough diagnosis and treatment. While not necessary for adults, it may limit the spread to vulnerable children.