DOCTORS ARE CALLING on parents to get their children vaccinated against whooping cough as cases have been on the rise.

There were 551 cases of whooping cough, also known as pertussis, this year so far. In contrast, there were only 18 cases in the whole of 2023.

About one fifth of all cases are in children under five years old.

The Irish College of GPs’ Clinical Lead for Infection Control, Dr Scott Walkin, says it’s young infants who are most at risk of getting seriously ill from the highly-contagious respiratory infection.

Babies over six months old should be vaccinated. 

Walkin said: “We are particularly concerned about babies under six months old, as they cannot be fully vaccinated until they are over six months old.

“About two out of three cases in very young infants require hospitalisation, and they are at particular risk of severe complications.”

These include pneumonia and seizures.

Parents can get vaccinated against whooping cough during pregnancy, which will protect newborns until they can be fully vaccinated.

The vaccine can be given from 16 weeks into pregnancy and up to the 36th week.

Babies are due vaccines at two, four, six, 12 and 13 months of age. Children then get a booster vaccination at junior infants.

Vaccines for babies and pregnant women are available for free from their GP.

The HSE has warned that pertussis can have a serious impact on a baby’s health. Among babies hospitalised with pertussis, more than half require intensive unit care. Of those, one in five develop pneumonia, 3% experience seizures, and up to 4% may die.

In rare cases, pertussis can lead to long term brain injury.

Five infants have died during pertussis outbreaks in Ireland since 2012. There have been no deaths to date in 2024.

In the UK this year, 10 infants have died of pertussis-related illnesses.

Between January and March 2024, in the EU/EEA region, there were 19 deaths, more than half of which were infants under six months old.