As of Dec. 19, 2024, Dakota County had 211 confirmed cases of Pertussis, often known as whooping cough. This number has jumped in post-pandemic years but the high-water mark of 211 cases is the most seen in Dakota County in the last decade.
“Currently in Minnesota, pertussis is spreading fast. Pertussis hasn't spread this much in more than 10 years,” according to the Dakota County’s website.
Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a highly infectious disease that affects the lungs causing cold-like symptoms which become more severe after 1-2 weeks to include sudden uncontrollable bursts of coughing, vomiting after coughing, and the telltale “whooping” sound that occurs when breathing in after a coughing fit. Symptoms can last 4-6 weeks or longer and the disease can be dangerous for the immunocompromised, infants, and pregnant women.
In Dakota County, the median age of those infected with whooping cough is 15, highlighting the spread of the disease through primary and secondary schools.
As to why whooping cough has made such a comeback in the county when in previous years cases were in the single digits, Dakota County Deputy Director Gina Pistulka turns to vaccination rates, especially among school-age children. “We are still recovering from COVID,” said Pistulka.
Despite numbers of other diseases like whooping cough and measles dropping during the pandemic years, in that time fewer people went out for preventative medicine meaning vaccination rates for other preventable diseases dropped. This drop coincided with widespread misinformation regarding vaccinations and a broader skepticism regarding the practice which also contributed to lower vaccination rates.
In 2024, 78% of Dakota County children aged 2-5 years, and 73% 6-17 are up-to-date on whooping cough vaccines. Those numbers are not reaching the level of herd immunity necessary to stop the spread of the disease. To reach herd immunity, thresholds vary disease to disease. For Polio, the rate is estimated to be around 80%, but for much more infectious diseases like measles the number is higher: it can be as much as 95% according to a study from Yale Medicine.
Early estimations for the COVID-19 vaccine herd immunity rates were 60-70%, but with the proliferation of variants, those numbers are now considered low.
More worrying still is that for the number of cases of whooping cough, “I’m sure it’s underreported,” said Pistulka.
Whooping cough is one of many reportable diseases meaning that identified cases must be reported to the Minnesota Department of Health in order to be better tracked and controlled. Dakota County undertakes case investigations for confirmed cases of whooping cough looking into who the infected might have contracted the disease from and informing workplaces if the disease is tracked back to it.
“We work really, really diligently to make sure all contacts have been investigated,” said Pistulka.
What is telling about the numbers of other infectious diseases like whooping cough during the COVID-19 Pandemic is that they fell when the global focus was on staying healthy. The rote practices of washing hands, wearing masks and not going out if you feel ill really work. “Those are very basic things to keep healthy,” said Pistulka.
Pertussis testing can be done either by nasal swab or blood test. Dakota County recommends that “If you or someone you know has a cough lasting seven or more days, get tested by your doctor or health care provider.”
For more information on Pertussis, visit the Minnesota Department of Health website at https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/pertussis