Pertussis
10 Active OutbreaksPertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious respiratory disease caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. It causes severe coughing fits that can last for weeks or months.
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What is Pertussis?
Pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, gets its name from the distinctive 'whooping' sound made when gasping for air after a coughing fit. Before the vaccine was developed, pertussis was a leading cause of childhood death worldwide. Today, it remains a serious threat, especially to infants who are too young to be fully vaccinated.
Symptoms
- Initial cold-like symptoms (runny nose, mild fever)
- Severe, uncontrollable coughing fits
- Whooping sound when gasping for air
- Vomiting after coughing
- Exhaustion after coughing fits
- Apnea (pauses in breathing) in infants
Transmission
Pertussis spreads through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It is highly contagious, especially in the first two weeks when symptoms resemble a common cold. Close contact with infected individuals poses the highest risk.
Contagious Period: From early cold-like symptoms through 3 weeks after coughing begins (or 5 days after starting antibiotics)
Prevention
- DTaP vaccine for infants and children (5 doses by age 6)
- Tdap booster for adolescents (age 11-12) and adults
- Tdap during each pregnancy (27-36 weeks) to protect newborns
- Isolation of infected individuals
- Prophylactic antibiotics for close contacts
- Practice respiratory hygiene and handwashing
Live Pertussis Global Case Map
9 countries with reported activity. Updated from real-time surveillance data.
Active Outbreaks & Recent Cases
Real-time intelligence from global health monitoring and AI-powered surveillance
Data sources: BEACON, ProMED, WHO, CDC, and 50+ national health agencies
✓ Live data updated in real-time from global health sources
Guam reports pertussis outbreak first since 2015
This event envelope contains reports on pertussis in Guam.
Source: BEACON - View Full Report
13.5mn kids didn't get even single vaccine in Ist year in 2025: WHO-Unicef report
An estimated 13.5 million "zero-dose" children, including 679,000 in India, did not receive a single vaccine in their first year in 2025, according to the annual WHO-UNICEF Estimates of National Immunization Coverage (WUENIC) released on Wednesday. Nigeria topped the chart with 2.2 million unvaccinated children.
The report said 90% of infants globally, or nearly 116 million, received at least one dose of a diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTP) vaccine, and 85% (110 million) completed the full
📰 162 news sources reporting on this story.
🔗 Read more at UN News
Pertussis Outbreak Hits Young Children in Cameroon
This event envelope contains reports on pertussis in Cameroon.
Source: BEACON - View Full Report
Vaccine stockouts leave thousands of Kenyan children exposed- Unicef
Thousands of children in Kenya have been left vulnerable to deadly childhood diseases after repeated vaccine shortages disrupted immunisation programmes over the past five years. The shortages affected vaccines that protect babies from illnesses that can quickly become life-threatening, including rotavirus, which causes severe diarrhoea and vomiting, measles and whooping cough. New global data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Unicef shows Kenya's childhood vaccination coverage has declined since 2021, after reaching its highest levels during that period. The rotavirus vaccine recorded the sharpest drop. Coverage for the final dose fell from 95 per cent in 2021 to just 29 per cent in 2022. The report attributes the dramatic decline to prolonged vaccine shortages, noting, "Progra...
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The dangerous health myth over 80,000 Australians overlook
Most adults think of whooping cough as a vintage childhood disease or something you only need to worry about if you're visiting a newborn. And the most dangerous myth most of us accept as truth? That the immunisations we received as children protect us for life. But during 2024 and 2025, there were 82,513 whooping cough cases across Australia, according to the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance. While school-aged children saw the highest infection rates, health authorities noted that the adult percentage (over 30 per cent) was significant. That's why a whooping cough booster is more prevalent than ever. The '100-day' reality check Otherwise known as the '100-day' cough, or pertussis, whooping cough is a serious respiratory infection that is caused by bacteria (Borde...
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Global childhood vaccination rates climb amid rising outbreaks and conflict
July 15 (Reuters) - Global childhood vaccination rates rose slightly in 2025, yet millions of children remained unprotected against preventable diseases as conflict, funding cuts and growing outbreaks undermined immunization efforts.
According to the latest immunization estimates released by the World Health Organization and UNICEF on Wednesday, 90% of infants globally, or nearly 116 million, received at least one dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough vaccine, known as DTP, in 2025,
📰 70 news sources reporting on this story.
Infant vaccination schedule in India: A month-by-month guide every parent should know
From the day a baby is born, vaccination becomes one of the most important conversations during the infant's first year. Certainly, the conversation is just as important.Vaccines have transformed child health across the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), immunization prevents 3.5-5 million deaths every year from diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), influenza and measles.In India, children are protected through the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP), one of the world's largest public health initiatives, which provides free vaccines against several life-threatening diseases. In addition, many pediatricians also follow the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) immunization schedule, which includes some additional vaccines based on a child's ...
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Meridian Bioscience Announces Health Canada License for Alethia® CMV Assay
CINCINNATI -- Meridian Bioscience, Inc., a leading global provider of diagnostic testing solutions and life science raw materials, announced today that Health Canada has granted a license for its Alethia® CMV assay. The addition of CMV expands Meridian's existing Alethia menu, which includes C. difficile, Group A Strep, Group B Strep, malaria, Mycoplasma, and pertussis assays. This clearance expands Meridian's molecular diagnostic offerings in the Canadian market. The Alethia platform delivers accurate molecular results in less than an hour to support evidence-based clinical decisions. With a small footprint and simple workflow, Alethia helps labs run efficiently while delivering reliable molecular results. The platform uses LAMP technology (loop-mediated isothermal amplification) for a co...
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Pertussis, Palau
This event envelope contains reports on pertussis in Palau.
Source: BEACON - View Full Report
Honduras Pertussis Outbreak: 91 Cases, Nine Deaths
Honduras is seeing an increase in pertussis cases and infant deaths, with transmission reported across most health regions. This reflects a wider post-pandemic resurgence of whooping cough throughout the Americas, caused by waning immunity and inadequate vaccination coverage.
Source: BEACON - View Full Report
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Expert Resources & References
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Disease information on Virus Watcher is reviewed by our Chief Epidemiologist, a former CDC lead analyst for FluSight forecasting. Outbreak data is aggregated from verified sources including BEACON, ProMED, WHO, CDC, and 50+ national health agencies. This information is for educational purposes and should not replace professional medical advice.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-17
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Common questions about Pertussis answered by our epidemiology team
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