Quebec is seeing an increase in whooping cough cases, and surge in Montreal.
Whooping cough (pertussis) is a highly contagious respiratory tract infection.
Health authorities are calling on parents to be vigilant to prevent spread. Deaths associated with whooping cough are rare, but most commonly occur in infants.
Montreal saw a spike in the number of cases recently. There were 57 confirmed cases this year, until June 3. The latest numbers show 76 cases up until June 10.
In 2023, there were only 14 total whooping cough cases for the city of Montreal.
Once you become infected with whooping cough, it takes about seven to 10 days for signs and symptoms to appear, though it can sometimes take longer. It can seem like a common cold, with a runny nose, nasal congestion, red, watery eyes, fever, and cough.
Before a vaccine was developed, whooping cough was considered a childhood disease.
Experts say that it’s important for pregnant women — and other people who will have close contact with an infant — to be vaccinated against whooping cough.
In Quebec, there are between 240 and 1,600 cases of whooping cough every year. And it peaks approximately every four years – the last was in 2019 with 1,269 cases.
The number of cases reported in 2020 and 2021 was lower (388 cases and 20 cases respectively), which may be attributable to the health measures in force in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.