Whooping Cough Hits High School Health District Reports Five More Cases

Lake City High School has joined the ranks of North Idaho schools hit by pertussis.

A Lake City student was among five more cases of whooping cough reported Thursday by the Panhandle Health District, bringing the total for the outbreak to 177 cases.

An intense effort to diagnose the disease and treat it with antibiotics began after a 2-month-old Post Falls boy died three weeks ago.

In Spokane County, 49 cases have been reported this year - 47 of them in the past week, including 14 new cases Thursday and 11 on Wednesday. Health district staff members are evaluating potential exposure to the illness in Spokane schools.

New cases are being diagnosed in southern Idaho as well, said Jeanne Bock of the Panhandle Health District.

Five nurses who came to Coeur d’Alene from Boise to help out returned home Thursday night, Bock said.

The health district staff has been calling everyone who may have come into contact with pertussis at daycare centers and elementary schools.

Because of the possibly overwhelming number of students who may be exposed in high schools or junior highs, the district is relying on those schools to send letters home informing families of possible exposure.

The pertussis “command post” in Kootenai County is the health district office at 1111 Ironwood Drive. People who may have been exposed to the disease can be tested there between 12:30 and 5 p.m.

During the next three weeks, health officials said, parents should have their children evaluated if they develop a cough, fever or other sign of respiratory illness. , DataTimes