HEALTH ADVISORY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:  Tina Regester, Public Information Officer, (410) 638-8477

NO LABORATORY CONFIRMED CASES OF PERTUSSIS

IN HARFORD COUNTY IN 2007

BEL AIR, MARYLAND (February 21, 2007)--Pertussis or Whooping Cough is a bacterial respiratory illness characterized by severe spasms of coughing that can last for several weeks or even for months. Pertussis is usually spread from person-to-person through close contact with respiratory droplets released when a person coughs or sneezes.  Pertussis is required by Maryland State Law to be reported to the State and Local Health Department. 

Proper laboratory testing for pertussis is essential.  Culture of a nasopharyngeal specimen is considered the “gold standard” for laboratory diagnosis of pertussis.  A positive culture for Bordetella pertussis confirms the diagnosis of pertussis.  Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of nasopharyngeal specimens is an alternative method to diagnose pertussis.  However, false positive results may be obtained and therefore a culture should also be used in addition to PCR.  Although serology is useful in the diagnosis of a number of infectious diseases, serology testing for pertussis is extremely difficult to interpret and therefore should not be relied upon to confirm cases. 

All culture confirmed and suspected cases of pertussis should be directly reported to the Harford County Health Department’s Office of Epidemiology at (410) 638-8442 in order to expedite any local response deemed to be necessary in order to intervene and control the spread of this or other communicable diseases.  As of this writing, the Harford County Health Department has not received any notification of a laboratory confirmed case of pertussis in Harford County for the 2007 calendar year.   

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