Experts detail the first warning signs of whooping cough in newborn babies as cases surge

Now, summer may be just around the corner but it's clear quite a few people across the UK right now are not feeling their best.

From a bad case of the sniffles, a headache that you can't seem to shake, a sore throat or just feeling the effects of fatigue - you're not alone as there's been a rise in cases for the '100-day cough'.

And this isn't your average tickly, phlegmy or chesty cough as this bacterial infection - also known as whooping cough - has the ability to lead to severe coughing fits.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) warned that there were 553 confirmed cases the highly contagious cough in England in January alone, compared with 858 cases for the whole of 2023.

As most parents know, this is not a concern to be taken lightly with experts now detailing the first major warning signs of whooping cough to look out for in newborn babies as outbreaks surge.

Whooping cough can cause cough seizures, a series of coughs that make it hard for a person to take a breath.

Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, has explained a little more about whooping cough and exactly what parents need to be wary of.

"When it finally stops, you take a breath in and it sounds like a 'whoop'," he said.

Now, in adults and children, whooping cough can just look like a common cold.

However, in young babies, an infection can be a whole lot more serious.

It can inflame little ones' airways which makes it difficult for breathe with the most

common complication of an infection being pneumonia, which can be fatal.

Dr. Thomas Murray, a professor of pediatric infectious disease at the Yale School of Medicine, added: "The disease is typically called whooping cough, but the very young babies don’t necessarily cough, they stop breathing."

There were 553 cases of whooping cough in January this year, compared to 858 in the whole of 2023.

If you are pregnant, it's important to get the whooping cough vaccine to protect your newborn baby, as they are at greatest risk.

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He noted that the first thing parents should be aware of is anyone who is sick trying to come visit their newborn, continuing: "For babies themselves, any fever over 100.4 degrees is something their paediatrician needs to know about."

If you find your baby's lips turn blue or they appear not to be breathing how they normally would, Murray notes that 'is something to be worried about, especially if they have been around someone who is sick'.

For more information, you can visit the NHS website here.