Q: With the recent whooping cough outbreak in New Brunswick, I read adults should get a booster shot if they have not already received one. I’m not sure if I’ve gotten a booster shot. Is it ok to get another one just in case?
Pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious respiratory infection that can be life-threatening to babies and young children. You can easily get it by inhaling respiratory droplets from an infected person’s cough or sneeze. Symptoms usually start 7-10 days later, and if left untreated you can spread it for up to three weeks.
Although there is widespread vaccination against whooping cough in New Brunswick, sporadic cases and small local outbreaks still occur, prompting health-care officials to stress the importance of keeping up to date on routine vaccinations to protect ourselves and those around us.
When adults and older children contract whooping cough, it is generally mild. However, when babies and young children, especially those who are not fully vaccinated yet, contract whooping cough, they are at a higher risk of severe infection and complications such as pneumonia. Approximately 1 in 400 infants with whooping cough die due to pneumonia or brain damage.
Symptoms start similarly to a cold with sneezing, runny nose, low-grade fever and a mild cough. Over the next couple weeks, the cough worsens, leading to coughing spells. Coughing is usually worse at night and can be so severe it may cause you to gag or vomit. Babies and infants are not always able to cough forcefully enough and may stop breathing. If you notice your child’s lips turning blue or they are not breathing as they normally would seek emergency medical assistance right away.
When young children stop coughing and can finally take a breath, they often make a “whoop” sound as they inhale. Babies, teenagers and adults rarely have a whoop-sounding cough. For this reason, anytime you have a cough that lasts longer than a week and appears to be worsening, you should see your health-care provider to ensure it’s not whooping cough.
Diagnosis is made based on symptoms and lab tests, and all diagnosed cases are reported to Public Health to help implement control measures. The infection is treated with antibiotics which help to decrease the severity of illness and reduce the spread of infection. Your cough may still linger for a few weeks and your prescriber may write you a prescription for an inhaler to help.
The whooping cough vaccine is part of the province’s publicly funded routine immunization schedule. Babies are vaccinated at 2, 4, 6 and 18 months of age, and again at 4 years old. Immunity from the vaccine tends to wear off in adolescence so a booster dose is given in Grade 7. An additional booster dose is given again in adulthood but not scheduled for a specific age, so many adults are due.
If you are unsure if you have received your adult booster dose, contact your prescriber to check your vaccination record. If you do not have a family doctor, you can contact Public Health to check your records and see if you are eligible. Adults are boosted by the Tdap vaccine which also protects against tetanus and diphtheria.
It is completely OK to have another booster during adulthood, and it is recommended that anyone who is in close contact with children do just that. To create a shield of protection around babies, all pregnant individuals are offered a booster dose during every pregnancy. Other adults that will be in close contact with the baby should get a booster dose if they have not received a dose in the last five years, and siblings should be up to date according to the provincial schedule. People working closely with children get a booster every 10 years; however, whooping cough immunity tends to fade after five years, so close contacts with babies should get their booster after five years.
Vaccination services are offered at community pharmacies; however, doses given at pharmacies are not part of the publicly funded program and result in out-of-pocket costs. Most people I vaccinate against whooping cough at the pharmacy are family members awaiting the arrival of a new baby. Please keep in mind, if you are planning a booster dose around the arrival of a new baby that it does take two weeks for our body to develop immunity after getting the vaccine. So, plan to come in early as babies arrive early all the time!
Erin Thompson (BSc, BScPharm) is a graduate of Dalhousie University and a community pharmacist practicing at Shoppers Drug Mart in Quispamsis N.B. Her opinions expressed in this column are published for educational and informational purposes only, and are not intended as a diagnosis, treatment or as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.