It may have resulted in whooping cough epidemics in California and measles outbreaks in England.
FORBES: Fraudulent Autism Vaccine Study Shows The Flaws In Medical Journal System
The pertussis vaccine, called DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis) has been responsible for a dramatic drop in whooping cough in recent decades.
FORBES: Whooping Cough Epidemic: Blame The Anti-Vaccination Movement
In 2010, 10 children died in from Whooping Cough in California.
CNN: Opting out of vaccinations could get tougher in California
The surge in cases of whooping cough, or pertussis, is largely among adolescents and adults.
Health officials are looking into whether cases like the dozen found in Philadelphia might be one reason the nation just had its worst year for whooping cough in six decades.
Whooping cough in older people can be an unpleasant illness, but does not usually lead to serious complications.
The last time we saw this many cases of whooping cough in California was 63 years ago, in 1947.
It is already happening with whooping cough in California, where 9 babies have died in the biggest epidemic in 60 years.
Dr. Jennifer Shu, a pediatrician at Children's Medical Group in Atlanta, Georgia, thinks this is a primary factor in the resurgence of whooping cough.
Clusters of unvaccinated people contribute to outbreaks, but in the case of whooping cough, the cycles will continue until a much greater number of people of all ages are immunized, Cherry said.
In the 1970s, fears that whooping-cough vaccine might cause brain damage led to a decline in vaccine cover and an increase in outbreaks of the disease.
This describes the 2010 whooping cough epidemic in California, largely caused by anti-vaxxers, much like the more recent measles outbreak.
In older children and adults whooping cough is said to be unpleasant but does not usually lead to serious complications.
California is suffering the worst epidemic of pertussis, or whooping cough, in 60 years, with over 5, 200 cases already, the most since 1950.
FORBES: Did False Autism-Vaccine Link Cause Whooping Cough Epidemic?
According to Forbes contributor Steven Salzberg, a whooping cough epidemic in California that has killed nine babies may be the result of the burgeoning anti-vaccine movement.
Since the pertussis vaccine's protection can wear off with time, a booster shot is recommended for adolescents at their 11-year-old checkup visit, as well as for adults who care for young infants, in order to protect from whooping cough until the babies have their own immunity.
In 2010, nearly 6, 000 cases of whooping cough (including 10 deaths) have been reported so far in the state of California alone.
The HPA said there had been 1, 047 whooping cough cases reported in July, bringing the total this year to 3, 513.
Whooping cough was declared an epidemic in California in June.
Here are some facts: pre-vaccination, whooping cough caused 9000 deaths per year in the U.S. Post-vaccine, this has dropped to 20 deaths per year.
FORBES: The 'Baltimore Sun' Sinks Deep Into Anti-Vaccination Quicksand
The new germ was first identified in France, where more extensive testing is routinely done for whooping cough.
About 90% of Southeast Asian children, for example, have been inoculated against diphtheria and whooping cough, leading to a 70% reduction in cases over the past 10 years.
Adolescent coverage for whooping cough is about 41 percent nationally and 43 percent in California, Martin said.
Health care workers in contact with patients should also make sure to get vaccinated against whooping cough.
As of Tuesday, the state has recorded more illnesses due to whooping cough -- 4, 017 -- than in any year since 1955, the department said.
According to the Department of Health report, when vaccines against anthrax and pertussis (whooping cough) were administered simultaneously to animals, it resulted in a severe loss of weight and deterioration in their physical condition.
In 2010 there have been 910 cases of pertussis, the technical term for whooping cough, as of June 15, state health officials said, and five infants have died of the disease.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said more than 41, 000 cases of whooping cough were reported to the agency last year, the highest level in more than 50 years and more than double the 2011 total.
Teenagers and adults can have whooping cough without knowing it and pass the condition along to infants, in whom the condition is much more serious because their immune and respiratory systems have not yet developed, Shu said.
应用推荐