PERTUSSIS … OTHERWISE KNOWN AS WHOOPING COUGH … WAS A MAJOR CONCERN IN NEW MEXICO BACK IN THE 1980S. BUT THE NEWS IS MUCH BETTER IN RECENT YEARS. THE ILLNESS CONTINUED ITS RISE SINCE THE 80S WITH ANOTHER SPIKE IN CASES IN 2012. MARISSA BARGSTEN WITH THE STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT SAYS IT PEAKED WITH 865 CASES THAT YEAR BUT IS NOW ON THE DECLINE.
CASES ARE STILL IN THE HUNDREDS: 371 IN 2014. THEN JUST OVER 200 LAST YEAR. BARGSTEN TELLS US HEALTH OFFICIALS WORK WITH OB-GYNS TO GET PREGNANT WOMEN UP TO DATE ON HOW TO PREVENT THEIR INFANTS FROM COMING DOWN WITH WHOOPING COUGH. SHE SAYS OF THE INFANTS WHO ARE INFECTED WITH PERTUSSIS, HALF END UP DYING.
BARGSTEN SAYS IT’S A CYCLICAL ILLNESS, SO WE COULD SEE CASE NUMBERS RISE AGAIN .
