One of the most disturbing diseases I am aware of is pertussis, better known as whooping cough. According to an informational page on pertussis by the CDC, whooping cough begins with cold-like symptoms. It then moves on to cause high pitched “whoops” as a baby or young child frantically tries to breath in between fits of extreme coughing and vomiting. About half of babies who come down with whooping cough have to be hospitalized. Considering its distinct and painful symptoms, it is strange that the extent of my knowledge of this gruesome disease, until a few weeks ago, was due solely to it being referenced in historical fiction books. Unfortunately, whooping cough doesn’t only live in the pages of historical fiction. According to a surveillance report by the CDC, there were 15,662 cases of whooping cough in 2019.
It seems strange that such a disturbing disease would still be so prevalent in the US today in light of modern healthcare advancements. However, it is not for lack of trying by the healthcare community. In fact, there is a vaccine for this sickness, called DTaP (there is also an adult version called Tdap). In an article about this vaccine by the CDC, I learned that DTaP is given in a series of five injections, and is effective for 8/10 to 9/10 children for the first year after their last immunization. It is only effective for 7/10 children 5 years after getting their final shot. These statistics alone seem to indicate how this disease could continue to spread. After all, even if everybody were to vaccinate their children, which they won’t, whooping cough could still infect 3/10 children 5 years after their last shot.
This may lead some to question why we don’t come up with a more effective vaccine. Well, this CDC article would be able to inform them that a more ‘effective’ vaccine did, indeed, exist. It was called DTP, and was a whole cell vaccine that helped build up immunity to the disease by introducing a weakened version of the actual bacteria into the body. However this vaccine’s side effects were too severe, so it was replaced with the slightly less effective, but safer, acellular DTaP vaccine used today. Basically, in healthcare we always have to do a cost-benefit analysis and decide which of the options we have is the best for the general public. As in this case, there is sometimes not a perfect option. To end on a lighter note, the 15,662 cases present in 2019 is MUCH lower than the 200,000 cases present in the 1940s. Clearly, even an imperfect solution is capable of saving thousands of lives.
Microbes and Musings 