Cases of a highly contagious Victorian-era disease have increased five-fold compared to last year, health officials warn.
The CDC said the US has recorded more than 15,000 cases of whooping cough in 2024 so far compared to 3,600 this time last year.
Though children are meant to be vaccinated before starting elementary school, officials noted there has been a drop in vaccination rates after the Covid pandemic.
Rates of the disease, which affects all ages but is most dangerous for young children, was highest in Pennsylvania, with just over 2,087 cases.
New York and Illinois followed closely behind with 1,781 and 1,058 cases, respectively.
The condition kills about one in 100 babies who become infected, including at least one infant in Alaska earlier this month, where rates have soared 70-fold. Last year, three children were killed.
According to the latest CDC data, rates of whooping cough in the US are five times higher than this time last year (stock image)
The bacterial illness, also known as pertussis, was common in the 1900s, had been previously controlled by vaccination.
But experts warn that the surge could be blamed on more parents opting out of whooping cough vaccines for their children after the pandemic, as well as the disease becoming more active and better at evading vaccines.
The findings come after officials in Idaho warned that cases in the state were 17 times higher than at this point last year. According to the CDC data, Idaho has seen 230 cases so far in 2024 compared to 13 at this point last year.
Whooping cough occurs when bacterial attaches to tiny hairs in the throat and nose and release toxins that cause airways to swell.
At first, this may cause mild symptoms like a runny nose or mild cough, but it can progress to a cough so violent it leads many patients to vomit and develop breathing problems.
According to the latest CDC data, there have been 15,661 reported cases of whooping cough so far this year, compared to 3,635 at this time last year.
In Pennsylvania, whooping cough cases increased from 198 at this time last year to 2,087, a more than 10-fold surge.
Of the cases in New York, about one in three were concentrated in New York City, the data shows.
California and Washington state rounded out the top five states with the highest rates, recording 1,045 and 773 cases, respectively.
Regional data shows that Mid-Atlantic states – New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania – had the most cases, with 3,996.
And though it did not rank in the top 10, Alaska saw the largest increase. At this time last year, the state reported just four cases. However, it has seen 297 so far this year, nearly 70 times that of the year before.
Health officials warned that the infection is initially difficult to tell apart from a cold, as the first signs are a runny nose and sore throat. But around a week later, sufferers may develop coughing bouts that last minutes, struggle to breathe after coughing and make a ‘whoop’ sound between coughs
Experts have suggested that the increase may be due to parents being more wary of vaccines after the Covid pandemic.
Dr Tina Tan, president-elect of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, told NBC News: ‘With the increase in vaccine hesitancy that has been going on since the Covid-19 pandemic, we’re seeing outbreaks occurring in kids who are not vaccinated.’
The CDC said that ‘vaccination is the best way to prevent pertussis. This is the Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) vaccine, which is typically given to babies, teens, and adults as a booster every 10 years.
However, the CDC also noted that the bacteria that causes whooping cough, Bordetella pertussis, is prone to mutations, which could make it able to evade vaccines.
FDA advisors met last month to discuss a need for longer-lasting vaccines, NBC News reported.
Despite the grim statistics, not all states saw increases. Nevada, for example, has reported just six cases so far, compared to 31 at this time last year.
Additionally, Utah has reported slightly fewer cases this year, with 145 compared to 172 last year.
