The number of cases of whooping cough, a highly contagious respiratory infection, has passed the 6,000 mark in Quebec this year. A “rare situation that must be taken seriously,” according to the national director of public health, Dr.r Luc Boileau, who nevertheless emphasizes that hospitalizations are rare.
In June alone, 3,362 were recorded in the territory, according to data from The duty obtained from the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS). As of July 6, 737 cases had been reported. “For 2024, we have 6,016 cases. We should be heading towards a fairly significant year. We have already had years where there were a lot of them. But like this one, it is really very rare, we have to go back a good twenty years to have that,” explains Dr. Boileau, in an interview.
This situation does not surprise him, however, given that whooping cough peaks in activity every three to five years, he explains. “But because of COVID-19, we had not had any [depuis un moment]. We had so many containment measures that bacteria like these circulated much less. So now, we are really in a post-pandemic rebound effect.
Whooping cough is characterized by severe coughing, mild fever, runny nose, and red, watery eyes. Possible complications of the disease include pneumonia, ear infections, hernias, rib fractures, and seizures. Infants under one year of age are most at risk of developing it, and children under three months of age experience the most serious complications.
Vaccination to prevent severe cases
“When we talk about whooping cough, dramatic cases almost always occur in very young children,” says Dr.r Luc Boileau: Fortunately, vaccinating pregnant women helps prevent a high number of serious cases of the disease, he points out.
“It really allows these mothers to develop antibodies that they pass on to their babies. The infant is protected during the first months of life. It helps us enormously,” he continues.
Since the beginning of the year, young people aged 10 to 14 have been the most numerous to be infected by the disease, underlines Dr.r Boileau.
Currently, only 41 cases of whooping cough have required hospitalization in Quebec in 2024 and no deaths have been reported to date.
The Estrie and Chaudière-Appalaches regions are those where the most people have been infected in 2024, with 810 and 948 cases respectively so far. “But in July, it increases much less in these regions, because they have already had a lot of cases in recent months,” says Dr.r Luc Boileau.
Now, it’s more places like Côte-Nord, Abitibi-Témiscamingue and Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean that are seeing an increase in their number of cases. “After Estrie and Chaudière-Appalaches, it’s now reached there,” he explains.