The Pilot News - Pertussis alert in Marshall County

Symptoms can include a hacking cough followed by intake of breath that sounds like “whoop.”
According to Greg Lenburg, director of religious education at St. Michael Catholic Church, they were contacted Sept. 17 by the grandmother of a child that had attended evening third grade classes sponsored by the church Sept. 10. Lenburg said she informed them that her granddaughter had tested positive for pertussis.
Lenburg said they sent a letter to every parent of every child who attended not only the third grade class, but all of the classes held on that evening, informing them of the situation.
He said the letter advised parents to seek advice from their own physicians.
Lenburg said following sending the letters, officials from the Indiana State Department of Health contacted them. He said, “We provided a list to the state with the names of all of the children in the program.”
The third grade class has a total of eleven students enrolled; however Lenburg did not know the exact number of students that were present at the class on Sept. 10.
There have also been reported cases in the Argos Schools.
Argos Schools Superintendent Barb Flory said, “We first sent home a letter on Sept. 5 with students in the one class from which the first case of whooping cough was identified. We did not want to create a sense of panic, but wanted parents aware of warning signs.”
She said, “We have also been in contact daily with the State Board of Health. By the middle of the next week, we sent home the letter with all students (K-12). Because ISTEP testing started the following week (Sept. 15-19), we also contacted Indiana Department of Education about our situation and a possible need for doing make-up testing.”
Flory said, “To date, we have only had four cases confirmed (from two classrooms), two students were never tested but received treatment, and seven others suspected (but tested negative).”
“We asked parents in our letter in the case of a lingering cough, to please take the child to their family doctor. Some doctors prescribed an antibiotic for some of our staff members and other students as a precautionary measure (which may explain the two students who were treated but not tested),” said Flory.
Flory said that parents have been very responsive and cooperative.
Tuesday, Elizabeth Hart of the Indiana State Department of Health issued the following information from Kristin Ryker, MPH, Vaccine Preventable Disease Epidemiologist with the ISDH: “Each year, the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) investigates several reported pertussis cases. The number of cases varies each year, but it tends to increase and decrease each three to five years. While we cannot discuss specifics about individual cases or groups involved in investigations, we regularly take steps to inform individuals who may have been exposed about how the infection can be prevented.”
She added, “The best way to prevent pertussis is by making sure that your pertussis immunizations are up-to-date. Pertussis vaccinations are available for individuals under seven years of age (DTaP) and for individuals ages ten through 64 (Tdap). People who are immunized may still get pertussis, but the illness is usually milder. Under certain circumstances, it is sometimes recommended that individuals exposed to pertussis be placed on antibiotics to prevent infection or reduce the severity of an infection should it occur.”
Pertussis is spread through contact with nose or throat secretions from an infected person, such as when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Symptoms of pertussis generally begin 7 to 10 days after exposure. They occur in three stages.
She said, “If an individual experiences symptoms of pertussis, it is important that they contact their healthcare provider for pertussis testing and treatment.”