Whooping cough epidemic continues to surge in Wash.
OLYMPIA, Wash. - Washington state's whooping cough epidemic continues to surge, with 1,738 cases reported so far this year, compared with 146 during the same time last year, officials said Thursday.
The state Department of Health reports that the rate of disease is highest among infants under 1 year in age, with 128.7 cases per 100,000 persons in that age range sof ar this year.
The second-highest rate is among those in the 10- to 13-year-old age group, with 122.7 cases per 100,000 people.
Officials believe the state could see as many as 3,000 cases by year's end. Health Secretary Mary Selecky declared the epidemic April 3, and since then officials have bought up the vaccine and made it available for free for people who don't have insurance.
Geographically, Skagit County is by far the hardest hit, with 343 total cases - or 287.5 cases per 100,000 residents.
Snohomish County has the next-highest number of cases - but with a greater population, the rate of disease works out to 40.1 per 100,000 population.
There have been 258 cases in King County - or 13.3 cases per 100,000 - and 245 cases in Pierce County, a rate of 30.1 per 100,000.
Ten counties report no whooping cough cases so far this year. Counties with no reported cases are Asotin, Ferry, Garfield, Klickitat, Lincoln, Pacific, Pend Oreille, Skamania, Wahkiakum and Whitman.
In the state as a whole, the incidence rate is 25.8 cases per 100,000 state residents - or an annualized rate of 67.1 cases per 100,000.
Officials said there actually may be more cases of whooping cough that have not yet been reported to the state Department of Health - so the 1,738 reported cases may be an undercount of the actual magnitude of the epidemic.
"Additional cases may have occurred, especially in the most recent three weeks, that are not yet made available to (the Health Department)," officials said in a statement.
Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is so named because of the "whooping" sound people often make while gasping for air after a coughing fit. A highly contagious bacterial disease, it starts off like a cold but leads to severe coughing that can last for weeks. In rare cases, it can be fatal.
Because the adult booster for pertussis - called Tdap for tetanus, diphtheria and acellular pertussis - has only been available since 2005, fewer than one in 10 adults have gotten the shot and most don't even know they need it.
Until routine child vaccination became widespread in the 1940s, pertussis caused thousands of fatalities each year in the United States. While deaths are uncommon today, they still occur: In recent weeks, infants in New Mexico and Idaho have died from the disease.
The state Department of Health reports that the rate of disease is highest among infants under 1 year in age, with 128.7 cases per 100,000 persons in that age range sof ar this year.
The second-highest rate is among those in the 10- to 13-year-old age group, with 122.7 cases per 100,000 people.
Officials believe the state could see as many as 3,000 cases by year's end. Health Secretary Mary Selecky declared the epidemic April 3, and since then officials have bought up the vaccine and made it available for free for people who don't have insurance.
Geographically, Skagit County is by far the hardest hit, with 343 total cases - or 287.5 cases per 100,000 residents.
Snohomish County has the next-highest number of cases - but with a greater population, the rate of disease works out to 40.1 per 100,000 population.
There have been 258 cases in King County - or 13.3 cases per 100,000 - and 245 cases in Pierce County, a rate of 30.1 per 100,000.
Ten counties report no whooping cough cases so far this year. Counties with no reported cases are Asotin, Ferry, Garfield, Klickitat, Lincoln, Pacific, Pend Oreille, Skamania, Wahkiakum and Whitman.
In the state as a whole, the incidence rate is 25.8 cases per 100,000 state residents - or an annualized rate of 67.1 cases per 100,000.
Officials said there actually may be more cases of whooping cough that have not yet been reported to the state Department of Health - so the 1,738 reported cases may be an undercount of the actual magnitude of the epidemic.
"Additional cases may have occurred, especially in the most recent three weeks, that are not yet made available to (the Health Department)," officials said in a statement.
Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is so named because of the "whooping" sound people often make while gasping for air after a coughing fit. A highly contagious bacterial disease, it starts off like a cold but leads to severe coughing that can last for weeks. In rare cases, it can be fatal.
Because the adult booster for pertussis - called Tdap for tetanus, diphtheria and acellular pertussis - has only been available since 2005, fewer than one in 10 adults have gotten the shot and most don't even know they need it.
Until routine child vaccination became widespread in the 1940s, pertussis caused thousands of fatalities each year in the United States. While deaths are uncommon today, they still occur: In recent weeks, infants in New Mexico and Idaho have died from the disease.
