Whooping cough (pertussis): symptoms, treatment and how long it lasts

The NHS says treatment depends on your age and how long you have had the infection. Hospital treatment is usually needed if you have severe whooping cough, or your baby is under 6 months old and has whooping cough. NHS inform says children under 6 months who are very ill and people with severe symptoms are usually admitted to hospital.

If whooping cough is diagnosed within 3 weeks of your cough starting, you will be given antibiotics to help stop it spreading to others. The NHS says they may not reduce symptoms. It stresses taking antibiotics until the course is finished even if you feel better, because stopping too soon could lead to the infection coming back. NHS inform says people who have had whooping cough for more than 3 weeks will not normally need specific treatment, as they are no longer contagious and antibiotics are unlikely to help.

At home, the NHS advises plenty of rest, lots of fluids and paracetamol or ibuprofen if you or your child are uncomfortable, and not to give aspirin to children under 16. NHS inform adds clearing mucus and sick from the mouth of a child and avoiding cough medicines, which are not suitable for young children and are unlikely to help.

The first signs resemble a cold: a runny nose and sore throat, and NHS inform adds red and watery eyes and a slightly raised temperature. A high temperature is uncommon according to the NHS. After about a week, coughing bouts begin that last a few minutes and are worse at night.

The NHS says you may make a "whoop" sound, bring up thick mucus that can make you vomit, become very red in the face (more common in adults), and have difficulty breathing after a bout. Young infants may turn blue or grey. NHS inform says the strain of coughing can cause slight bleeding under the skin or in the eyes.

In very young babies the cough may not be particularly noticeable, but there may be brief periods where they stop breathing.

Pertussis is the medical name for whooping cough, an infection of the lungs and breathing tubes. The NHS says it spreads very easily and can be serious, and that it is important for babies, children and anyone who is pregnant to be vaccinated. NHS inform describes it as a highly contagious bacterial infection that causes repeated coughing bouts which can last 2 to 3 months or more.

It spreads in the droplets of coughs or sneezes, and anyone can catch it. NHS inform notes that people who have had it before are not fully immune, although it tends to be milder the second time, and that protection from the childhood vaccine wears off after a few years, so older children and adults can be infected.

Yes. NHS inform says you can catch it through close contact with someone with the infection, and that a person is infectious from about 6 days after they were infected, when they just have cold-like symptoms, until 3 weeks after the coughing bouts start. Antibiotic treatment can reduce the length of time someone is infectious.

The NHS says to stay off school, work or nursery until 48 hours after starting antibiotics, or 3 weeks after your cough started if you have not had antibiotics. To limit spread, NHS inform advises covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing and sneezing, disposing of used tissues immediately and washing hands regularly. Other household members may be offered antibiotics and a vaccine dose.

The NHS says the cough may last for several weeks or months. NHS inform describes coughing bouts that can last 2 to 3 months or more. Bouts will eventually become less severe and less frequent, but it may be a few months before they stop completely.

Being contagious is a shorter period than having the cough: up to 3 weeks after coughing starts. The cough can therefore continue for a long time after you are no longer infectious.

The NHS says if you are pregnant you should have the whooping cough vaccine, usually when you are around 20 weeks pregnant. This helps protect your baby for the first few weeks of their life. NHS inform says the best time is soon after the 16th week. Speak to your GP surgery or midwife if you are 20 weeks pregnant and have not been offered it.

If you are pregnant and have been in contact with someone with whooping cough, the NHS advises asking for an urgent GP appointment or getting help from NHS 111.

The NHS says babies under 6 months old have an increased chance of dehydration, breathing difficulties, pneumonia and seizures. NHS inform adds weight loss, kidney problems, brain damage caused by lack of oxygen, and, very rarely, death among the complications for the youngest babies.

In older children and adults it is generally less severe, but the NHS lists sore ribs, hernia, middle ear infections and leaking urine when coughing as possible problems from the strain of coughing. NHS inform mentions nosebleeds and bruised ribs. These effects can still be unpleasant and prolonged.

Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 if your baby is under 6 months old and has symptoms of whooping cough, you or your child have a very bad cough that is getting worse, or you have been in contact with someone with whooping cough and you are pregnant. NHS inform adds speaking to your GP practice or 111 if you have had a cough for more than 3 weeks.

Call 999 or go to A&E if lips, tongue, face or skin suddenly turn blue or grey, you or your child are finding it hard to breathe properly (shallow breathing), there is chest pain that is worse when breathing or coughing, which could be a sign of pneumonia, or your child is having seizures. NHS inform also lists long periods of breathlessness or choking and periods where breathing stops. Do not drive to A&E.

The NHS says the vaccine is routinely given as part of the 6-in-1 vaccine for children at 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks and 18 months, and the 4-in-1 pre-school booster at 3 years 4 months. Pregnant women are also offered it.

NHS inform says these vaccines do not offer lifelong protection but help stop children getting it when they are young and more vulnerable, and that older children and adults are not routinely vaccinated except during pregnancy or an outbreak. People who have had whooping cough before are not immune, although it tends to be less severe the second time.

Whooping cough is assessed and treated through NHS GP, 111 and hospital services, and the vaccines are free through the NHS routine schedule. Private GP appointments can assess a persistent cough but do not change the standard advice: antibiotics are only helpful early, babies under 6 months need hospital assessment, and 999 or A&E is for breathing difficulty, blue or grey skin or seizures.