Cases of whooping cough have been confirmed at James Thomson Elementary School in Powell River.
Staff, students and parents were informed by Vancouver Coastal Health Communicable Disease Control in a letter on Monday, January 14, that they may have been exposed.
The disease was identified at James Thomson between December 3, 2018, and Monday, January 14, 2019.
Whooping cough (pertussis) is a contagious disease of the lungs and throat caused by bacteria in the mouth, nose and throat of an infected person, and spreads when the sick person coughs or sneezes, according to VCH.
It may take from about seven to 10 days and as many as 21 days to feel symptoms in some cases.
Symptoms may include long spells of coughing that often end with a whoop or crowing sound when inhaling.
The coughing may be so bad that the person gags or vomits.
This cough can last up to two months and happens more at night.
Whooping cough can be very serious and life threatening for infants under one year old.
VCH advises James Thomson students, staff and parents with early symptoms to see a health-care provider to get tested and treated.
Treatment can reduce the duration of the cough. Also, the earlier a patient is treated with antibiotics, the less likely they are to spread the disease to other people.
Parents and teachers at James Thomson have been asked to take the VCH letter to their health-care provider. In it, VCH recommends preventative antibiotics for some people who have been exposed to pertussis and have a very high risk of complications, even if they do not have symptoms yet, including babies under one year of age and pregnant women in the last three months of pregnancy.
Questions can be addressed by contacting the Communicable Disease Control nurse at 604.675.3900, or toll free at 1.855.675.3900, for anyone in the last three months of pregnancy or who has a child under the age of one.
