THERE have been 17 confirmed cases of whooping cough reported to health chiefs in the Isle of Man so far this year.
They believe that’s an underestimate since the disease is mild in adults and older children and they may not seek medical attention..
There have been three whooping cough deaths in newborn babies in England and Wales during October 2012. This brings the total number of newborn baby deaths from whooping cough this year in England and Wales to 13.
The Manx Department of Health announced on September 28 that it was offering whooping cough vaccination to pregnant women between 28 and 38 weeks of pregnancy.
Advice to pregnant women:
Health chiefs say pregnamt women should ensure they have received the whooping cough vaccine.
The vaccine will protect newborn babies against whooping cough, which can be extremely serious in babies.
They say other children should have a complete course of vaccination as this would protect them and reduce the chances of them passing on the infection to newborn babies.