Health officials are warning residents about a sharp increase in cases of whooping cough and walking pneumonia in San Diego County.
The illnesses often begin like a common cold — cough, runny nose, mild fever — but for some, these symptoms can quickly escalate into something more serious. Whooping cough, in particular, can become severe, with relentless coughing bouts that may cause vomiting and even difficulty breathing.
Detection can be tricky, said Dr. Edmund Milder, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Rady Children’s Hospital.
“What becomes unique is that, as the rest of your symptoms fade away, the cough only worsens,” Dr. Milder explained. “These bouts of coughing are pretty severe, and people can, you know, sort of turn very red in the face. They can even have vomiting at the end.”
So far in 2024, San Diego County has recorded 547 confirmed cases of whooping cough, also known as pertussis, up from 332 in all of 2023.
Milder said while teens and older children are most affected, infants are the most vulnerable. For newborns, who aren’t yet fully vaccinated, whooping cough can be deadly. The county said no pertussis deaths have been reported in San Diego County since 2016.
Milder stressed the importance of vaccination for expectant mothers, recommending a pertussis booster shot during the third trimester of pregnancy.
"That boosts mom's antibodies, which she then passes to her baby before delivery, and that keeps them protected through their early life," he said.
In addition to whooping cough, health officials are also tracking a significant rise in walking pneumonia, with cases among children aged 2 to 4 quadrupling between Oct. 19 and Nov. 2 of all ER diagnoses.
Kaiser pediatrician Dr. Sheri Plaisted said this uptick is the highest she’s seen in her career.
"It used to just be more like school age kids that we would see it in. But now we're starting to see it more and more in the 2 to 4 year old population, which is kind of scary, because we don't usually see that in that age group, and they tend to be the ones that end up getting hospitalized and are a little bit sicker from it."
Both physicians strongly advised parents to keep their children's vaccinations up to date.
They also urged parents to stay vigilant, especially if their child’s symptoms seem more severe than usual.
