Whooping cough making a comeback

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial disease that can be deadly for infants and young children. Health officials in St. Joseph County say they have seen an increase in cases.



"The main thing to look for is that cough," said Dr. Matthew Teeters.



Experts say there's been a huge increase in the number of people who have whooping cough.



"We've had 15 or so cases over the last several years, this year it looks like we may triple that. It's not certain yet but we are over 33 already," said Dr. Thomas Felgert, St. Joseph County Health Officer.



At first whooping cough looks and sounds like a cold, but it gets bad, fast, especially in babies.



"When you're coughing, you're unable to breathe and that whooping cough is so severe that you will have to breathe deep and try to pull in a lot of air at once that's where the whooping sound comes from," said Teeters.



Doctors say the best thing for you to do is make sure you and your kids get the whooping cough vaccination,



If you have an infant in the family, it's a good idea for parents and grandparents to also get the vaccine.