KILLER BUG
Five babies die from ‘100-day cough’ this year as whooping cough cases surge 43% in a month
Officials have confirmed Europe is in the grip of an epidemic
FIVE British babies have died from whooping cough this year with cases already three times higher than 2023's total.
Eight out of 10 deaths are in babies born to unvaccinated mums but uptake of the free NHS jab has fallen in recent years.
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The UK Health Security Agency confirmed there were 2,793 cases of the “100-day cough” and five infant deaths in England between January and March.
All five babies who died were younger than three months old.
It is a huge surge from 858 cases and one death during the whole of 2023.
And it comes after the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control confirmed this week there is an epidemic on the continent.
Read more on whooping cough
The illness, real name pertussis, is a bacterial infection of the lungs.
A drop in vaccination coverage will be a key factor in this rise in cases
Dr Michael Head
It spreads quickly between children and starts like a cold but may evolve into a bad, long-lasting cough.
The UKHSA said the bug peaks every three to five years and the last spike in the UK was in 2016.
Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, consultant epidemiologist at the agency, said: "Our thoughts and condolences are with those families who have so tragically lost their baby.
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"Whooping cough can affect people of all ages but for very young babies it can be extremely serious.
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“Vaccination remains the best defence and it is vital that pregnant women and young infants receive their vaccines at the right time."
Pregnant women can get a free vaccine that gives their baby 92 per cent protection from birth.
Tots’ immunity is then topped up with the six-in-one NHS jab at eight, 12 and 16 weeks old with a booster at age three.
Eighty per cent of infant deaths since 2012 – 21 out of 26 – were in babies born to unvaccinated mothers.
NHS medical director, Professor Sir Stephen Powis, added: "It is vital that families come forward to get the protection they need."
Just 61 per cent of pregnant women in England were vaccinated in 2023, down from 71 per cent in 2020.
Dr Michael Head, from Southampton University, said: “A drop in vaccination coverage will be a key factor in this rise in cases.
“This new data shows just how serious whooping cough is – it can and does kill babies.
“A high coverage of vaccination is so important.
“The vaccine is safe and extremely effective.”
Tory MP Steve Brine, chair of the Commons’ Health Committee, called the deaths “a tragedy” and said medical students and retired NHS staff should be drafted in for a jabs campaign.
He said: “These figures highlight the need for rapid action to prevent a further fall in the uptake of vaccinations.”
STEADY UPTICK IN CASES
Whooping cough cases in England have steadily risen in the first few months of 2024.
According to the UKHSA, 556 cases were provisionally confirmed in January, followed by 918 in February and 1,319 in March.
Half of cases were in people aged 15 or older, who usually only get a mild illness, and 28 per cent were in children aged between 10 and 14 years of age.
But the rates of whooping cough remained highest in babies under three months, UKHSA noted.
Cases are expected to remain high for months and could be on track for the worst year in at least a decade.
There were 108 infants younger than three months with confirmed pertussis between January and March 2024, it said.
Young infants are at highest risk of severe complications from whooping cough, like pneumonia and seizures, as well as death.
Whooping cough cases have been rising across England, as well as in many other countries, since December 2023.
This is likely due to a peak year in cases being "overdue", according to UKHSA, as well as the impact of the pandemic, which meant there was reduced immunity to the illness.
Uptake of jabs that protect against whooping cough has also fallen in recent years across the country, both among pregnant women and babies.
Dr Amirthalingam said: “Pregnant women are offered a whooping cough vaccine in every pregnancy, ideally between 20 and 32 weeks.
"This passes protection to their baby in the womb so that they are protected from birth in the first months of their life when they are most vulnerable and before they can receive their own vaccines.
“All babies are given three doses of the 6 in 1 jab at eight, 12 and 16 weeks of age to protect against whooping cough and other serious diseases such as diphtheria and polio, with a pre-school booster offered at three years and four months."
The number of two-year-olds who completed their six-in-one vaccinations as of September 2023 was 92.9 per cent, compared with 96.3 per cent in March 2014.
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Prof Powis said: "With cases of whooping cough continuing to rise sharply across the country, and today's figures sadly showing five infant deaths, it is vital that families come forward to get the protection they need.
"If you are pregnant and have not been vaccinated yet, or your child is not up-to-date with whooping cough or other routine vaccinations, please contact your GP as soon as possible, and if you or your child show symptoms ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111."
Whooping cough symptoms
WHOOPING cough (pertussis) is a bacterial infection of the lungs and breathing tubes.
The first signs of whooping cough are similar to a cold, such as a runny nose and sore throat (a high temperature is uncommon).
After about a week, you or your child:
- will get coughing bouts that last for a few minutes and are worse at night
- may make a "whoop" sound – a gasp for breath between coughs (young babies and some adults may not "whoop")
- may have difficulty breathing after a coughing bout and may turn blue or grey (young infants)
- may bring up a thick mucus, which can make you vomit
- may become very red in the face (more common in adults)
The cough may last for several weeks or months.
Source: NHS
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