Pertussis - an infectious disease caused by pertussis - is most common in young children. Pertussis is given by airborne droplets, like most common respiratory infections. However, it is much more dangerous, as it can cause serious complications from the respiratory, cardiovascular and nervous systems. In addition, a person with whooping cough is a carrier of the disease for 30 days, which creates a danger to others. That is why it is so important to distinguish whooping cough from other diseases.
How to determine whooping cough in children?
Diagnosis of whooping cough in children at the earliest stage of the disease is difficult, since the first clinical manifestations of whooping cough are very similar to the symptoms of usual acute respiratory viral infections: fever, chills, runny nose, cough. And from the moment of actual infection to the manifestation of the first symptoms of whooping cough passes from 3 to 15 days (usually 5-8).
How is pertussis?
In the subsequent course of the disease, three periods are distinguished:
- Catarrhal period . Continues from 3 to 14 days. The main symptom is a dry cough, less often with a cold. The body temperature is normal or slightly elevated (usually not more than 37.5 ° C). Despite the treatment, the cough remains dry, frequent and eventually, by the end of the catarrhal period acquires a paroxysmal character.
- Spasmodic (convulsive) period . Can last from 2 to 8 weeks. In the first 1-1.5 weeks of the period, the frequency and intensity of coughing attacks increase, then stabilize and decline. This period is characterized by severe perspiration in the throat, which causes coughing attacks. The cough itself consists of short coughing jerks, a whistle is clearly heard on the inspiration (this is due to spasm of the glottis). At the end of the attack, sputum is allocated. Sputum in whooping cough is thick, has the appearance of whitish viscous mucus, reminiscent of raw egg white. If the attack is prolonged, then it can cause hypoxia of the brain, which leads to vomiting. During the attack the face and tongue of the patient turn red, then turn blue, the face becomes puffy, the veins on the neck and the vessels of the eyes become visible. If the disease is severe, the attacks are frequent, then the puffiness becomes permanent, small hemorrhages appear on the skin of the face and mucous membranes. Under the tongue (due to the friction of the tongue stuck out during the coughing of the tongue) there may appear a small sore covered with a white coating. The child can become listless, irritable, because he is afraid of seizures that have exhausted him.
- Permission period . Continues 2-4 weeks or more. Cough becomes more rare, without attacks and gradually fades to nothing. Improves the overall condition of the patient.
Pertussis is very difficult for infants. The spasmodic period occurs more quickly, with a spasmodic cough as such may be absent, and instead of it one can observe attacks of anxiety, screaming, sneezing. At these moments, the child can group and adopt the embryo position. Especially dangerous in whooping cough in infants are delayed breathing. They can occur during attacks and outside of them and even in a dream,
Significantly reduce the risk of pertussis disease preventive vaccinations. Children starting from the age of three months are given a DTP vaccine containing, in addition to pertussis, diphtheritic and tetanus components. The grafted child can also become infected with whooping cough, but will bear it much more easily than ungrafted. Symptoms of whooping cough in vaccinated children are erased, the disease proceeds in an atypical form: without fever, without a cold, with atypical coughing instead of frequent debilitating coughing attacks.