THE SCOURGE OF CHILDREN

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21396, 20 October 1934, Page 7 (Supplement)

THE SCOURGE OF CHILDREN

Whooping cough can strike at any age, but chiefly affects children and young babies. One attack usually gives immunity for the remainder of one's life, a second attack being very rare indeed. It is a much more serious disease than is sometimes realised, especially in the case of young babies. The danger does not lie in the disease itself, but in the complications, the most serious of which is pneumonia. it is very contagious, and the incubation period is six to eighteen days, which means that a child is not safe until nearly three weeks from the date of exposure to infection. Unfortunately the most infectious period is during the early stages of the disease, during which the diagnosis is difficult to verify. The patient remains infectious for about six weeks from the commencement of the attack. Start and Progress A typical attack begins with a cough, which is difficult to distinguish from the symptoms of an ordinary cold.

After a few days the cough becomes convulsive in type, and this is the characteristic symptom of whooping cough. In an ordinary cold or in an attack of bronchitis the child may cough frequently and almost without cessation, but it draws breath between the coughs, while in an attack of whooping; cough the coughs are so rapidly repeated that there is no time to draw breath. This convulsive coupling is well described as a " fit " of coughing. The child gets red in the face, and in a severe case even purple. As the attack progresses each fit of coughing ends in a vomit. Spasmodic Coughing The " whoop " is caused by the loud indrawing of breath at the end of an attack of coughing. The whoop may be absent in some mild cases, and the diagnosis does not depend upon its presence, but upon the spasmodic nature of the coughing. In many cases the severe strain of coughing causes effusions of blood into the eyes, and sometimes there is bleeding from the nose. There is not much fever in an uncomplicated case, and it usually lasts only a few days. The usual course is for the cough to get worse for a week or two, and persist without improvement for three or four weeks, and to be then followed by gradual improvement. The most important complications are pneumonia and ear abscess. If the temperature persists, or if a child is apparently seriously ill, with rapid breathing between attacks of

General Home Treatment

coughing, and, especially, if the sides of the nose are moving with each breath, pneumonia should be suspected, and medical aid called in without any delay. The homo treatment of whooping cough should be to keep the child in bed for a few days until the fever has disappeared. From then 011 fresh aitis necessary; and the child should be out of doors in the daytime. It should be kept quiet and at rest, as exertion of any kind precipitates an attack of coughing. The diet should be light and nourishing, as indigestion causes distressing coughing. If there is any suspicion of pneumonia or any earache, the child should be put to bed and a doctor called in. Many parents fear that the child will suffocate or die during a fit of coughing. There is no known case of death from the coughing itself except in the case of previously delicate or very ill-nourished children, in whom the heart is previously impaired. The only great risk is that of pneumonia. Inhalation treatment is very popular, for the vapours soothe the coughing and allow a better night's rest to the patient.