Your Childrens Health

If you live in Utah, now is the time to get your children vaccinated against the whooping cough – medical name pertussis.  Whooping cough is spreading at an alarming rate throughout Utah, and parents should take action to ensure their children are immunised.
Parents may be worried about the possible side effects of immunisation, but the tiny chance that your child may be affected is totally outweighed by the effects of the disease itself.
So what is whooping cough?  It’s not too serious for adults, but can be fatal for your little ones.  It’s highly contagious and long lasting – if your child gets it then he or she could be ill for weeks.  It’s characterized by continuous spasms of coughing that can result in malnutrition, pneumonia and brain disease. 
What if you don’t live in Utah?  Well you should get your children vaccinated too.  Whooping cough is on the increase.  The initial vaccine also doesn’t give lifelong protection.  Teenagers and adults can – and should – get a booster known as TDaP. 
If you’re in the US, children under 18 who are uninsured or otherwise not covered can get the whooping cough vaccination free of charge from the health department. 

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This entry was posted on Friday, March 31st, 2006 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Infections, Medical Care, Adolescence. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.