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A case of the highly infectious respiratory condition called whooping cough has been discovered at Sacred Heart Academy, an all-girls Catholic high school in Louisville.
The Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness notified the school about a single case on Friday, said Josh Shoulta, director of enrollment and marketing for Sacred Heart Schools. Neither the student’s age nor grade has been released.
The previous day, the health department had announced three cases in Louisville infants who hadn’t been vaccinated against the potentially fatal condition, which is also known as pertussis. The department called those cases “highly unusual” and urged parents to get their children immunized on schedule.
Whooping cough found in 3 Louisville infants
Whooping cough, which has been making a comeback in this country in recent years, can be spread through the air when infected people cough or sneeze, but most kids are protected from severe illness by having received diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus shots, according to the health department advisory.
If children are behind on getting their shots, however, they’re vulnerable to getting sick from pertussis, which has early symptoms that mimic the common cold, the health department noted.
The department’s advisory about Sacred Heart Academy tells parents who notice symptoms in themselves or their children to see a health care provider, who should consider testing for whooping cough.
“Those who are coughing should not return to the facility until they have been cleared by their health care provider or taken the appropriate antibiotics for five days,” the advisory states.
Shoulta said he doesn’t think there have been a lot of phone calls from parents, but “we think we’re doing all the right things to make sure that this incident is limited.”
Parents and students were notified via a system that’s similar to email on Monday, and faculty and staff were notified just prior to that, Shoulta said.
Shoulta said he’s unaware of any other students displaying whooping cough symptoms. However, “in the instructions, if they do experience symptoms, they’re actually asked to seek out medical attention, so that information would not be available to us.”
Symptoms begin with sneezing, running nose, low fever and mild cough, but a stronger cough with a whoop-like noise can surface after about 10 days, according to the health department. Sometimes, vomiting or discharge of thick, clear mucus follows the cough.
Infants may not develop the whoop-like cough but may seem sick or stop breathing, the health department noted.
Federal officials recommend that children get five doses of the childhood vaccine, called DTaP, with one dose at each of the following ages: 2, 4, 6 months, 15 through 18 months, and 4 through 6 years.
The health department has said that adults who frequently come in contact with young children also should be vaccinated.
The infants in the three cases from last week were ages 6 months or younger and were not vaccinated because of postponed medical appointments, the health department said.
Pertussis is up nationally and Kentucky has had at least 104 cases so far this year and nearly 300 last year.
Symptoms can arise from five to 10 days after exposure or as much as 21 days later, according to the health department. Coughing may continue for up to six weeks after infection and the person may seem well between coughing episodes.
Reporter Darla Carter can be reached at (502) 582-7068 or dcarter@courier-journal.com.