To let you know there is a serious whooping cough outbreak in the UK?

My GP surgery did ask me to come in after a telephone consultation as they had additional concerns, but they asked me to take full COVID style precautions - mask/hand sanitiser/ keep a distance etc.

@ShrinkingEveryDay Thanks I've just had a quick Google and it does last approx 10 years. I was aware in the lower uptake of vaccines due to numerous reasons.

Dc was born 11 years ago so I had the vaccine during pregnancy but it will have worn off by now. A colleague who I work with who is quite senior had whooping cough earlier in the year. It was the first time they have been off sick in the 7 years I have been woth the company.

If it is WC please don’t take him in as its horrendously infectious and you’ll potentially give it to everyone else in the waiting room 😬

Antibiotics don’t relieve the symptoms they just stop the spread if taken within the first 3 weeks. After that they are a waste of time unfortunately 🙁

Yes the vaccine doesn’t last into adulthood so adults aren’t protected. Not enough children are now being vaccinated which is why we’re getting this outbreak with adults too 🙁

I just got diagnosed with whooping cough yesterday and I would not wish it on anyone, let alone a child/baby. I have bad whooping with it and nearly passed out a couple of nights ago. It's very frightening to experience.

It's good to raise awareness even if it has been discussed before. The NHS guidelines were updated within the last week to reflect how many cases they are getting (my GP showed me). I would be very very cautious with a young baby out and about if I'm honest.

It’s not linked it’s the same illness - the new name for it is what’s causing the confusion.

OP, I’m in month 6 now, it’s horrendous 😢

I knew about the whooping cough outbreak but I didn’t know the vaccine stops working after about 10 years! That’s worrying. I had the vaccine recently due to being pregnant and I’m relieved that it should protect my baby until they get their vaccines but I have 2 much older kids whose vaccines have presumably “run out” now. I don’t want them getting sick either.

Was it the GP who said about the vaccine waring off? It not something I've heard of. There were several news reports on this earlier in the year, none mentioned anything about vaccine effectiveness. Just encouraging those who haven't recieved the vaccine to take it up.

It has been mentioned since around January that cases were on the rise, but is also being called 100 day cough which is confusing.

Please do contact your GP if you feel it necessary and or the cough sounds bad or seems to not sort itself.

I have just been supporting my 18 yo daughter in hospital after a particularly horrible rush to a&e because of a lung bacterial infection causing pneumonia because she didn't want to bother the Dr, and just thought it was a bad cough.

She couldn't breathe and had to be in for a whole week on oxygen and IV antibiotics. It was terrifying, and at only 18!

It wasn't whooping cough, but just wanted to remind parents these things can go south quick if not treated, even in older teens!

So please speak with your GP, and get antibiotics!

I didn't know there was, I meant a routine booster automatically given at school.

There is a booster …..lots of nhs trusts are now offering it to staf

Same, I saw the headlines a while ago and didn't pay much attention as I was secure in the knowledge my DC were vaccinated...didn't realise it wore off. Wonder why there isn't a booster, maybe there will be now.

Does the 100 day cough have the whoop sound of traditional whooping cough or is it severe. Tonal coughing fits?
Ive had whooping cough as a child and whooped, DS had a cough that didn’t go this winter. He coughed until he was sick and then coughed some more but no whoop.
I did take him to the doctors and he was fully vaccinated as a small child

Son is in a class of 28 and a few months back an exhausting cough flew round the class. So many off with exhaustion. I wasn't aware of a whooping noise.
After about a month one of the mums went to GP (we all just assumed it was nasty virus/100 day cough which although lingering wasn't making them ill after initial 10 days) and tested positive for whooping cough..

Edited to say VERY contagious in classroom, but not at home. Son is 11 which fits what OP says.

It is news to me that the vaccine wears off so early as 10 in fairness - I have been smugly ignoring the whooping cough stuff because my nine year old in vaccinated.

Outbreak here in France too. Thanks for the warning, OP as my DSs live in UK and won’t be protected any more…

Op glad you've got antibiotics and really hope dc improves soon. However don't be worry if they don't and the cough still lingers. The antibiotics aren't always affective for wc

100 day cough isn't linked to whooping cough - it's another name for it!

Although lots of people are jumping on the bandwagon for relatively minor coughs and sayings it's 100 day cough. If you've had whooping cough you'll know

I've just had it at 44. It was horrific. Still coughing after a month.

I feel like this also as my 13yo has been having coughing fits for several days now. It started off with cold symptoms, but now it's only coughing. I have kept him off school this week. He just isn't fit to go in. No temperature either, I have checked.

I suppose I could phone and ask advice from GP reception....just never know if you are doing the right thing!

I think gps call it a 100 day cough variant cos they cba testing and filling out all the paperwork ( it’s a noticeable disease)…..but the treatment will be the same….I started on clarythramycin at day 5 but although it stops you being infectious it doesn’t reduce symptoms as such…..im 8 weeks in now and still have some violent coughing bouts every day

My 12yo has had a bad cough for about a week but the actual cough doesn't sound bad. No 'whooping' or gasping for breath as such but it's very persistent . I keep debating on trying to get an app but I feel like I'll be dismissed as wasting time as he doesn't have a temp (although he did have one day of temp couple of days before his cough started). Nhs says not to come in for a cough less than 3weeks but also not to come in at all for WC as they can diagnose over the phone. He's mostly fine within himself.

Our doctors make you feel you are a massive inconvenience unless you're seriously ill so I never know if I'm under or over acting about appointments!

Just to add something new to the discussion, my daughter had been diagnosed with mumps this week, which I wasn't expecting given she is fully vaccinated too. She is 10, no outbreak here that the gp knew of