I actually chose to outline two current events, in
different places, that correlate strongly with each other. The first article is
one from Australia. The article is titled Increase in Whooping Cough in Preschoolers May be Due to Removal of Booster Jab. The article was posted
on November 15, 2014, written by Sue Dunlevy, and it points out two factors that could be causing the increases in
pertussis worldwide. The first factor, which can be deduced from the title, has
to do with new vaccines wearing off sooner than previous applications for pertussis, effectively rendering children defenseless. The reason
the switch was made to these vaccines was because
Pertactin Molecule
of less severe side effects.
They are now currently looking into re-administering the 18 month booster dose and
urging people to keep up with the proper vaccination schedules, in order to
lengthen protection of the vaccination. Currently we are also seeing children
whose parents have kept up on vaccinations still contracting the
full-blown illness. This points out the
second and most alarming factor. We are now seeing pertussis bacteria mutating to
evade our vaccines. To briefly outline the mutation, it has to do with a specific
protein pertactin, which is a protein that helps pertussis bacteria adhere to the linings of
our airways. All current vaccines have pertactin in them so the body can build
antibodies to combat the protein when encountered. As of 2013, researchers
began finding strains of Pertussis that were pertactin. Current research shows
these new pertactin-negative strains are as transmissible as known pertactin-positive
strains. As a result, research is being done to sequence the genes of
pertactin-negative strains in an attempt to find an alternate target protein to
add into current vaccines to help combat the newer strains. New South Wales researchers have found
80% of pertussis cases in the state were in fact caused by mutated pertussis strains.
I chose a second article because this article hits a little closer to home than cases in Australia. This article was titled GT County Whooping Cough Cases Continue to Increase and was written by Sarah Elms on November 14, 2014. It is about a current pertussis endemic occurring in Traverse City Public Schools in Michigan. This outbreak began and forced the Grand Traverse Academy, a k-12 charter school, to close for the week to prevent the spread of the bacteria. Mike Lahey, coordinator with the health department, has confirmed 15 cases with a possible 167 cases linked to the school. He also notes the health department has confirmed at least one additional case of pertussis since Wednesday, November 12, 2014. This article correlates to the first factor in the other article because of the 15 cases, ten were either not vaccinated or properly up to date on their immunizations.
Until people begin to realize the severity of this bacteria and how easily it is for children to contract, cases will continue to rise. It is essential parents keep up with childhood vaccination schedules. Pertussis is a highly contagious, person to person spread disease. It can be spread by the simple act of coughing or sneezing while in close contact with others, who in turn breathe in the pertussis bacteria. Although the disease does not affect adults as severely as children, adults act as a viable transmission source to children. Adults who have the disease may simply think they have a cold and continue to interact with their child unknowing they harbor a potentially deadly disease to children. Keeping up to date on vaccinations is the only real way to combat the disease and currently, even that is not stopping the transmission. This blog is not to scare anyone, but rather to inform people on a particularly dangerous disease.
This video is a sad example of the severity of whooping cough and how an adult can unknowingly pass this disease to their child. My condolences to the Charles Family for their loss.
References
Dunlevy,
S. (2014, November 15). Increase in Whooping Cough in Preschoolers May be Due
to Removal of Booster Jab. Retrieved November 16, 2014, from http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/increase-in-whooping-cough-in-preschoolers-may-be-due-to-removal-of-booster-jab/story-e6frg6n6-1227123589057?nk=b01ae48631184a
Elms, S. (2014, November 14). GT County whooping cough cases
continue to increase. Retrieved November 16, 2014, from
http://www.record-eagle.com/news/local_news/update-gt-county-whooping-cough-cases-continue-to-increase/article_3e02a954-c06a-5f00-9c7a-d97411b40b0f.html
PBS NewsHour (2012, August 22). Losing a Baby to Whooping
Cough: One Woman's Story [Video File] Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV0cxeg8xCY
I don’t see the point of keeping up or getting more vaccinations if those who are up to date are still getting the disease. I would like to see the numbers that show me the chance of getting the disease if still vaccinated vs chances of getting the disease while having no vaccination or vaccinated x years ago. I think that would help to put things in perspective for me. Before this I article I had no idea how serious Pertussis or whooping cough could be. I have never even heard about vaccines against whooping cough for adults, or that it’s really easy to pass it on to a child. I wish there was a way to test if you have a regular cold or whooping cough for those that work with or see kids on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteWell first off, yes you can still get the disease, but the severity is a lot less. Secondly, when talking pertussis, it is not adults we are concerned about, but children. Adults merely act as vectors to pass this disease to children, which is where it has the largest impact. You have to understand, bacteria are resilient, there is a reason they have been around longer than us and were among the first living things on earth. They mutate to beat our vaccinations. If you read my first post, you will get an idea, number-wise, of how serious of an epidemic pertussis is. Below is a link to cases reported yearly in the US alone, by the CDC. Just look at the number of cases before the late 1950s when a vaccine was produced and the numbers after. You cannot say there is not a significant difference. Soon enough we will find a vaccine that will combat this new strain of pertussis, get it under control, and then in the far future it will mutate again, that is just the way it is. We co-evolve with these things. Bacterial trends are nothing new.
Deletehttp://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/surv-reporting/cases-by-year.html
Hey Randy,
DeleteI had no idea bacteria worked as described above. I figured that if we found a vaccine and if everyone were to take it, the bacteria would die out not adapt as it does in this case. I agree that even though the vaccination may not destroy all cases of the bacteria that people should still take it for prevention, especially since most people are around other people all the time; as in the example with the Australian school. If one person at school is infected, it can easily spread, so it is very important to get vaccinated. The blog was really interesting, thanks.
Hi Randy,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post. The way you organized your post, it kept me engaged throughout your article. I am confused about the pertactin molecule that you described in the post. When you say “pertactin-negative”, what do you mean? Is the protein absent from the bacterial surface? If it is absent, then how does the bacterium adhere in its host? It is common for viruses to have surface proteins for adherence and have mutations in them, but I wasn’t aware that bacteria have surface proteins too.
And I don’t even want to get started on the vaccine debate! It is a huge controversial topic, but I personally believe that vaccines are very important, and parents need to be educated about vaccines.
Neha, you got it. They do not contain pertactin, but this means there is another protein responsible for adherence. Researchers are currently looking into these newer strains to find what it is that makes them adhere without pertactin.
DeleteI think that your article review was very interesting. In response to one of the other comments here I think that the point of renewing the vaccines is to give your child the best possible shot at avoiding the disease while they try to figure out a better way to combat the issue. I have known several children who have had whooping cough. Thankfully they were older children and all of them survived but it proved to be a long and difficult recovery for them. I would be interested to read more about what avenues researchers are exploring to increase the effectiveness of the pertussis vaccine.
ReplyDeleteWow Randy, Pertussis being able to mutate in order to evade vaccinations is a scary thought. It sounds like it could almost become the next kind of flu where a new vaccine must be made each year in order to battle the mutations. I had no idea pertussis was so serious as a college student who is neither an infant or responsible for any. This is good to know though since I have a niece and would not like to be a mode of transmission. I think it is interesting that a vaccine with fewer side effects was put into place that ended up offering less protection. It's hard to make the decision between what is a better pro for children so young, and personally I do not like to take any type of medicine or shots but this complicates things more. Especially in light of the outbreak in Michigan. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy how the bacteria is able to mutate in order to "survive". I heard on the radio that the flu has also changed and all the current vaccinations won't work to prevent the flu. Are there any other symptoms that an adult can notice as a warning sign that they have it? It seems a bit hard to worry each time you get a cough, but when I have kids I will definitely be more precautions around them. How long have they known about Pertussis? This is a very interesting subject. I look forward to learning more.
ReplyDelete