Whooping cough outbreak over in Nunavut

A whooping cough outbreak in Nunavut has ended three and a half months after it was declared. On Wednesday, April 2, the Nunavut health department said there had been only seven confirmed cases in Igloolik since last November. They were in children under 15, none of whom required hospitalization. There were also no deaths. The outbreak had been declared on December 16. Though the outbreak is officially over, residents of Igloolik are still advised to look for symptoms, especially a cough that lasts longer than a week or is followed by a “whoop” sound. Vaccination is also recommended to prevent infection.
Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, can affect anyone, but the most severe cases are in young children. While the Igloolik outbreak is over, there is still another one active in Naujaat, which was declared by Nunavut health officers last month.