A whooping cough epidemic has hit Hawke's Bay, causing 10 people to be hospitalised.
Already 27 cases have been reported this year, compared to 23 for all of 2010, and 19 in 2009. Hastings, Flaxmere and Waipukurau are the hardest hit.
Last year the Bay got off comparatively lightly with 12 people per 100,000 contracting the disease compared to the national incidence rate of 18. This year the region's incidence rate of the third-world disease was at 20 cases per 100,000 people.
Hawke's Bay District Health Board medical officer of health Lester Calder said the reported cases represented only the "tip of the iceberg".
"Every four to five years we experience an outbreak of many cases of whooping cough, called an epidemic, which is what we are experiencing this year," Dr Calder said.
Twenty-two cases were from Hastings, two from Napier, and three cases had recently appeared in Central Hawke's Bay. Of the cases, half were people not up-to-date with immunisations.
Whooping cough - or pertussis - is a highly contagious bacterial infection spread by coughing that can cause severe coughing fits, vomiting and lead to serious complications and in some cases prove fatal.
Babies under six months are particularly vulnerable because it can cause difficulty in feeding and breathing. Many babies with the disease need hospital care.
It is sometimes called the 100-day cough. It usually starts with a runny nose, cough, sneezing and a mild fever, but the cough increases in frequency and duration in the next few weeks. Children can turn blue during coughing fits and may make a "whoop" sound as they breathe. Vomiting is common after a long coughing attack.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but only if caught early. Antibiotics can also prevent it developing in those who are exposed to others with the disease.
While immunisation provides the best form of protection, it does not give 100 per cent immunity. It does, however, decrease the severity of the illness, and in doing so, prevents children getting so sick they need to be admitted to hospital.
Dr Calder said it was especially important for babies to receive all three of their whooping cough vaccinations on time - at 6 weeks, 3 months and 5 months of age. Children needed booster shots at 4 and 11 years.
District health board immunisation co-ordinator Margaret Dalton said babies who did not receive their vaccinations on time had five times the risk of being admitted to hospital.
Older children and adults could also get whooping cough, and even if the cough disappeared after several weeks, it could take several months to fully recover.
Dr Calder said adults did not always get the characteristic "whoop" sound and could unknowingly pass the infection on to younger family members.
He advised children and adults with a cough to stay away from babies and infants as much as possible.
During the last New Zealand epidemic in 2004/5, 6000 cases and one death were reported.
Parents concerned about whooping cough should seek advice from their GP or practice curse, call the Immunisation Advisory Centre toll free on 0800 466 863 or go online to the Immunisation Advisory Centre Website www.immune.org.nz or visit the Ministry of Health's website, www.moh.govt.nz/immunisation.
Whooping cough epidemic hits Hawke's Bay
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