KY Two unvaccinated babies die of whooping cough in KY as d [View all]

https://www.alternet.org/whooping-cough/

Two unvaccinated babies die of whooping cough in KY as disease rise is predicted to continue

Sarah Ladd, Kentucky LanternJune 07, 2025 | 09:00AM ET

Two unvaccinated babies have died from pertussis, better known as whooping cough, in Kentucky in the last six months, the Kentucky Department for Public Health announced Friday.

These two deaths in infants, whose mothers were also not vaccinated against pertussis, are the first whooping cough deaths in Kentucky since 2018, the department said.

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“Anyone can get whooping cough, but infants are at greatest risk for life-threatening illness,” Dr. Steven Stack, the state’s public health commissioner, said in a statement. “Fortunately, when vaccinations are administered to pregnant women, it provides protection to both the mother and the baby.”

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Symptoms

Runny or stuffy nose
Uncontrollable coughing
Vomiting from coughing
Fever below 100.4 Fahrenheit
Apnea (life-threatening pauses in breathing) and cyanosis

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