Health
Outbreak of Whooping Cough Hitting Vaccinated Kids and Parents
- Pertussis vaccine doesn’t provide long-lasting protection
- Delayed diagnosis and testing contribute to the outbreak
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When Patricia Teklu’s daughter started coughing uncontrollably, her pediatrician said it was a routine asthma flare up. But that didn’t explain the eight nosebleeds she endured in just one day.
“She was coughing so much that she literally could not breathe,” said Teklu, a 36-year-old software sales executive from Boston. The spasms were so severe that the 8-year-old was vomiting mucus and blood, causing a hemorrhage in both eyes that were swollen and black-and-blue. “I had no idea what was going on.”