Vaccine Preventable Diseases

Vaccines Save Lives

Vaccine Preventable Diseases

As per the official Australian Department of Health website, there has been a 99 per cent decrease of deaths caused by vaccine-preventable disease since vaccinations were introduced to Australia in 1932.

Because of this intervention, the number of ‘active’ diseases has declined as has the number of fatalities.

Approximately over half of the preventable diseases are transmitted through day-to-day activities such as sneezing, coughing or through direct contact with contaminated food or a contaminated person.

Due to the ease in which these diseases can be transmitted and the fact that symptoms of the disease are not obvious straight away, it can sometimes be difficult in tracing the exact person or instance when the disease was contracted.

Outbreaks of Disease

An ‘outbreak’ of a particular disease occurs when a large number of individuals in that particular area are not immune or vaccinated against that disease. In Australia alone, in the last twelve months there has been confirmed outbreaks of influenza, chicken pox and pertussis (whooping cough).

An outbreak is caused when a disease gains momentum through a clear and abundant chain of transmission. Due to most vaccine preventable diseases not presenting any symptoms for up to one week after initial infection, communities are forced to become reactive rather than proactive.

The best method of preventing outbreaks is by giving the disease less opportunity to populate by interrupting it’s stream through mass immunity.

Are Vaccines safe?

Vaccines are using what’s already in your body and educating your immune system on how to recognize and repel a particular disease.

When your child is vaccinated you can rest assured that it has been registered by the Department of Health Therapeautic Goods Administration (TGA) before it has been supplied to your health care provider. The TGA is responsible for ensuring the required testing and ongoing monitoring of the individual vaccines. By the time the vaccine is administered to your child it would have been through at least ten years of testing with each individual component of the vaccine tested rigorously.

The date and details of the vaccine/s administered to your child will be officially recorded on the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register. You will also receive a copy of the possible side-effects your child may experience after being immunized.

All information on the diseases themselves and the actual vaccinations is available to the public via the Australian Government Department of Health website.

Vaccine-preventable Disease Information

Disease	Symptoms	Probable Cause
Pneumococcal disease	Symptoms The pneumococci are found in the upper respiratory tract of humans and generally are carried with no symptoms. Only a limited number of the different serotypes are found to be responsible for invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), although they do vary by age group and the geographic area in which they are found. Most cases are found in young children and in elderly adults. Prior to the introduction of widespread vaccination programs, around 78 per 100,000 children under 2 were infected with IPD; and following the introduction of widespread vaccination the overall notification rate of IPD fell 75% for this age bracket.	Probable Cause Pneumococcal disease is caused by a bacterial infection. There are over 90 types of pneumococcal bacteria, with their polysaccharide capsule determining how infectious the specific bacteria is, and infection with any one type results in immunity specific to that bacteria. Notification rates for IPD in other age brackets also reduced after the introduction of widespread vaccination, even though these age brackets were not targeted for vaccination, showing the herd immunity effect for this disease. Indigenous populations in Australia have higher incidence rates of IPD than non-Indigenous populations. Pneumococcal disease serotype distribution is more diverse in adults than in children, and more diverse again in Indigenous populations than in non-Indigenous.
More information on Pneumococcal disease	About Pneumococcal	Immunise Health Handbook – Pneumococcal
Poliomyelitis (polio)	Symptoms Symptoms include headache, upset stomach, tiredness and a stiff neck or back, and can include paralysis which is usually asymmetric. Paralytic polio has a case fatality rate of 2-5% in children and up to 30% in adults, with a fatality rate of up to 75% in bulbar polio (infection of the brainstem).	Probable Cause Poliovirus is an enterovirus which inhabits the gastrointestinal tract, and there are three serotypes known as type 1, 2 or 3. The virus is excreted in stools for several weeks following infection. It is spread via the faecal-oral route and can cause asymptomatic infection. The virus is highly infectious with an incubation period of 3 to 21 days. Infection with polio can lead to post-polio syndrome, with around 40% of those who survive developing further symptoms 15-40 years later. Worldwide vaccination programs have led to the eradication of the disease in many countries, with Australia certified free of circulating polio in 2000.
More information on Poliomyelitis (polio)	Polio and Prevention	Immunise Health Handbook – Poliomyelitis
Q fever	Symptoms The incubation period is 2 to 3.5 weeks, and presents as a quickly developing high fever with rigors, heavy sweating, extreme tiredness, muscle and joint pain, severe headache and light sensitivity. As the disease progresses, it can lead to symptoms such as jaundice, pneumonia and weight loss. 10 to 15% of those infected develop post Q fever fatigue syndrome (QFS). The disease is rarely transmitted between humans.	Probable Cause Q fever is caused by a bacterial infection of Coxiella burnetii. It survives in air, soil, water and dust, but is inactivated by pasteurisation temperatures. It can also be transmitted on surfaces such as wool, leather, clothing, straw and other packing materials. Often infection is asymptomatic. Q fever is a disease of both wild and domestic animals, such as cattle, sheep, goats, kangaroos, cats and dog, who shed the disease into the environment following giving birth, as the birth products contain high levels of the bacteria in infected animals, and it is also spread through their urine, faeces and milk. Humans are most at risk when they are in contact with infected animals, such as livestock workers, those in the meat industry and shearers, and they generally contract the disease through inhaling the bacteria left in the environment.
More information on Q Fever	SA Health – Q Fever Information	Immunise Health Handbook – Q Fever
Rabies and other lyssaviruses	Symptoms Incubation for the disease is around 3 to 8 weeks, but can be as short as a week and as long as several years, although these extremes are rare. The risk of infection is higher and incubation period shorter with an increasing number of wounds and their proximity to the head and neck, as well as areas with many nerves such as the fingers. Rabies is almost always fatal. The early stage of the disease presents as loss of appetite, cough, fever, headache, body aches and pains, nausea, sore throat, tiredness and vomiting, and anxiety, agitation and apprehension can also be present. The patient deteriorates into the encephalitic phase, which includes bizarre behaviour, fear of water or fresh air, disorientation and hyperactivity, as well as hypersalivation, hyperthermia and hyperventilation. This period can last up to 12 days, before the patient dies from cardiac or respiratory arrest, or falls into a coma.	Probable Cause Lyssaviruses are viruses in the family Rhabdoviradae, genus Lyssavirus. 12 species within the Lyssavirus genus have been identified, including rabies and other related viruses such as the Australian bat lyssavirus (ABLV). Rabies and other lyssaviruses are diseases of animals which can be transmitted to humans through contact with saliva or nerve tissue from an infected animal. Rabies is used to refer to infection with any of the lyssaviruses, and in humans is generally found after an animal bite. Rabies is found around the world, except in Antarctica, and varies depending on the animal hosts present. Classical rabies is found throughout Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe. Australia is currently free of rabies in terrestrial mammals; however bats around the world carry classical rabies as well as other lyssaviruses. Australian bats are known to carry lyssaviruses and three cases of fatal ABLV in humans are known to have occurred in Australia, along with two cases of ABLV in horses.
More information on Rabies and other lyssaviruses	Rabies Information Rabies and other Iyssaviruses	Immunise Health Handbook – Iyssaviruses
Rotavirus	Symptoms Infection can range from asymptomatic infection, to mild illness with diarrhoea for a day or two, to severe diarrhoea along with vomiting, and fever, which combine to cause an electrolyte imbalance which can lead to shock and death. Rotavirus infections are characterised by their dehydrating effects, and are often more severe than other types of gastrointestinal infections. The virus has an incubation period of 1 to 3 days, and generally illness resolves within 3 to 7 days.	Probable Cause Rotaviruses are viruses that can cause severe gastroenteritis in young babies and infants. The disease is spread through close personal contact via the faecal-oral route and though the presence of the virus on surfaces. It can also be spread through food and water contaminated by faeces, as well as respiratory secretions. Infections occur worldwide and it is considered that infection as a child is almost universal. The first infection is most likely to cause severe diarrhoea leading to dehydration. Natural infection provides some immunity to future infection. Prior to the widespread use of the rotavirus vaccine in Australia, around 10,000 hospitalisations per year of children under 5 years old were considered due to rotavirus, with around 1 death per year, although this is likely to be a conservative estimate.
More information on Rotavirus		Immunise Health Handbook – Rotavirus
Rubella	Symptoms Symptoms include a transient rash and swelling of glands in the neck (specifically the post-auricular and sub-occipital glands); and it can include arthritis and joint pain. Other complications are rare. The incubation period is 14 to 21 days and it is infectious for around a week before the onset of the rash, and around 4 days after the rash appears.	Probable Cause Rubella is caused by a virus called Rubivirus and is generally a mild infectious disease which is spread through coughs and sneezes. Infection with rubella in pregnancy is associated with a high risk of foetal infection and congenital rubella syndrome (CRS). Around 90% of babies born after their mothers were infected with rubella in early pregnancy had some sort of abnormalities linked to CRS. These include intellectual disabilities, cataracts, deafness, heart defects and abnormalities, reduction of interuterine growth, and leisions of the brain, liver, lungs, and bone marrow. Deafness and vision issues are the most common following infection in the first trimester of pregnancy. Generally, cases of CRS are rare after 20 weeks gestation.
More information on Rubella		Immunise Health Handbook – Rubella
Tetanus	Symptoms The incubation period is around 3 to 21 days and usually appears around 10 days after the injury occurred. Early symptoms include ‘lockjaw’, where the muscles of the jaw spasm and tighten; difficulty in swallowing; and a stiff or painful neck, or shoulder and back muscles. Spasms can affect breathing. Death is usually due to respiratory failure, hyper or hypotension or cardiac arrhythmia.	Probable Cause Tetanus infection is caused by a bacterium called Clostridium tetani which can be found in soil and can enter wounds, where the bacteria can grow and produce a neurotoxin and a haemolysin (a substance which breaks down red blood cells). Tetanus is often fatal due to the toxin produced by the bacteria, which attacks the central nervous system and leads to very painful muscle spasms and rigidity. Tetanus can infect small, trivial or even unnoticed wounds, and vaccination is the only effective method for protection against tetanus. Cases of tetanus in Australia are usually found in older adults who were not vaccinated or whose immunity has waned over the years.
More information on Tetanus		Immunise Health Handbook – Tetanus
Tuberculosis (TB)	Symptoms Commonly it causes lung disease as the infection is usually air-borne, and symptoms include a cough, fever, sweats, weight loss and coughing up blood. The disease can also include meningeal TB and disseminated disease which are both more common in young children, and both are considered very serious infections.	Probable Cause Tuberculosis (TB) is caused by bacilli called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Many infections are asymptomatic, but those infected have a 10% risk over their lifetime of developing illness up to many years after the initial infection. In 2010, it’s estimated that there were around 8.8 million cases of TB around the world, with around 1,200 cases notified in Australia each year, generally in those born overseas.
More information on Tuberculosis (TB)	Health Direct – Tuberculosis	Immunise Health Handbook – Tuberculosis
Typhoid	Symptoms Typically, typhoid cases a low fever, a headache focused at the front of the head, general tiredness, muscle aches and pains, loss of appetite and a dry cough. An increase in fever often occurs during the course of the illness and constipation or diarrhoea is often present. The disease can also lead to bleeding or perforation in the intestines, and typhoid encephalopathy (infection of the brain). In around 10% of those infected, the disease can reoccur 2 to 3 weeks after initial recovery.	Probable Cause Typhoid is a bacterial infection caused by Salmonella Typhi , and paratyphoid is caused by Salmonella paratyphi. The two diseases are also known as enteric fever. The incubation period for typhoid is generally 7 to 14 days, although symptoms can develop within 3 to 60 days after initial exposure. Typhoid is generally seen in areas with poor sanitation, untreated water and poor food hygiene are found. Generally 150 or fewer cases are reported each year in Australia, and these are usually related to travel to regions where the infection is prevalent.
More information on Typhoid	Health NSW – Typhoid Better Health – Typhoid and Paratyphoid	Immunise Health Handbook – Typhoid
Varicella (Chickenpox)	Symptoms The incubation period for chicken pox is around 14-16 days, and infected people are contagious from two days before the rash appears until all the blisters have crusted over. Generally, children develop between 200 and 500 spots, and complications can include secondary skin infections, pneumonia, acute cerebellar ataxia (loss of coordination due to swelling in the brain), aseptic meningitis, transverse myelitis, encephalitis and lowered platelet levels. It can also lead to death.	Probable Cause Chicken pox is caused by a virus from the herpes virus group, called Varicella-zoster virus (VZV). The first infection with the virus causes chicken pox, also called varicella. Later exposure to the virus can result as herpes zoster, known as shingles. Chicken pox is a very contagious disease spread through coughs and sneezes, as well as contact with the fluid from the blisters caused by the infection. Generally the disease is mild and most people recover easily. However, complications do occur, and the disease is more severe in adults who were not infected as a child or who have not been subsequently vaccinated. Prior to widespread vaccination in Australia, around 7 to 8 deaths occurred each year from around 240,000 cases. Infection during pregnancy can lead to congenital varicella complications, including skin and limb deformities, vision complications and brain injuries. Infants whose mothers were infected during pregnancy are also at a higher risk of developing shingles at a young age.
More information on Varicella (Chickenpox)	NCIRS – Varicella Fact Sheet	Immunise Health Handbook – Varicella
Zoster (Herpes Zoster)	Symptoms A rash appears when the virus is reactivated, and can also include headache, light sensitivity, tiredness and severe pain or tingling in the affected nerves. Post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) is the most common and debilitating complication of shingles, and is described as pain lasting for more than 3 months after the rash first appears. The disease can also affect the optic nerves, causing keratitis and chorioretinitis, meningoencephalitis and myelitis, bacterial skin infections, scarring and pneumonia.	Probable Cause Herpes zoster, also known as shingles, is caused by a virus from the herpes virus group called varicella-zoster virus (VZV). Infection with the virus causes chicken pox in the first instance, and shingles is caused by reactivation of the virus which remains in nerves after the initial infection. Shingles is most common in people over 50 years of age, and even more so in those over 70. Up to 26% of people with shingles develop complications, and complications increase in frequency as age increases. 1 in 5 of those over 80 who have shingles are likely to develop PHN.
More information on Zoster (herpes zoster)	Health Direct – Shingles	Immunise Health Handbook – Zoster

Disease	Symptoms	Probable Cause
Cholera	Cholera is caused by a bacterial infection which leads to a sudden onset of watery diarrhoea which is painless and profuse. Severe cases can lead to death. The bacteria are usually transmitted through food and water which has been contaminated with human waste. Shellfish from waters contaminated with human waste have also been identified as responsible for causing outbreaks.	The disease is considered endemic in Africa, Asia, South America and Central America, and epidemics are common following events such as natural disasters and civil unrest, which can lead to food and water supplies to become contaminated. Cases in Australia (between 2 and 6 a year) are almost always found to be in individuals who have become infected after travelling to endemic areas overseas, although the risk of infection to travellers who are able to access safe water sources and maintain hygiene standards around food preparation is considered low, even within countries where cholera is endemic.
More information on Cholera	Information Cholera Cholera Information	Immunise Health Handbook – Cholera
Diphtheria	Diphtheria is a bacterial infection which is spread through coughing and sneezing, contact with skin lesions or from contact with soiled articles. The disease affects mucous membranes, although the most common is pharyngeal diphtheria. This is characterised by a greyish or greenish membrane in the upper respiratory tract, which can lead to obstruction of the airway and hence suffocation.	Before the introduction of a diphtheria vaccine, diphtheria was responsible for more deaths than any other infectious disease. Since the vaccine became available and vaccination rates have increased, diphtheria has virtually disappeared from Australia. Recent cases in Australia have developed from infections imported from overseas travel.
More information on Diphtheria	NPS – Infections – Diptheria	Immunise Health Handbook – Diptheria
Haemophilus influenza type b	Haemophilus influenza is a bacteria found in the upper respiratory tract. There are six capsular types (a to f) and prior to vaccination, almost all infections were caused by the b strain. Infection with Hib can cause meningitis, epiglottitis, septic arthritis, cellulitis and pneumonia. Often infected infants are drowsy, with reduced feeding and a high fever. Inflammation of the epiglottis (epiglottitis) leads to obstruction of the airway which can include a soft stridor and sometimes drooling. Cases including meningitis and epiglottitis are almost always fatal without treatment, and even with treatment the case-fatality rate is around 3%, while 15-30% of those infected have long term side effects.	Prior to the introduction of the Hib vaccination, 95% of epiglottitis cases were caused by Hib infection. Since the widespread use of the vaccine, there has been a reduction of at least 95% in Hib case notifications. Cases were predominantly seen in children under 5, due to developing immunity to the disease as they were exposed.
More information on Haemophilus influenza type b	Information Haemophilus Influenza Type B NCIRS – Fact Sheet – Influenza B	Immunise Health Handbook – Influenza Type B
Hepatitis A	In children, infection is usually asymptomatic or causes very mild symptoms. In adults, the disease is characterised by a 4-10 day period of fever, malaise, weakness and loss of appetite, along with nausea and vomiting. Dark urine is generally the first indication of acute infection and is followed by jaundice and pale faeces a day or two later. Some abdominal discomfort or pain can occur in the vicinity of the liver. Generally people recover within a month of the infection, and the infection does not cause chronic liver disease. Once a person has been infected, they have lifelong immunity, although relapse has been found in around 10% of infected people.	It is generally transmitted through the faecal-oral route, and only a small amount of the virus is presumed to be necessary to cause infection. Hepatitis A is caused by a viral infection of the liver. The virus can survive on surfaces outside of a human host and can survive in food at room temperature for several hours, and it is somewhat resistant to heating and freezing of the food.
More information about Hepatitis A	Information – Liver Disorders – Hepatitis A Hepatitis Australia – Hep A	Immunise Health Handbook – Hep A
Hepatitis B	The incubation period for hep B is between 45 and 180 days, and it is infectious for several weeks before the infected person shows signs of acute illness, until the end of the acute illness phase. Symptoms include fever, malaise, jaundice, weakness and loss of appetite, along with nausea and vomiting and abdominal pain (particularly on the upper right). Dark urine and light coloured stools can also be present. Infection in children and babies, espcieally those under 1 year old, can often be asymptomatic, whereas 30-50% of infections in adults will be symptomatic.	Hepatitis B (hep B) is a viral infection of the liver and is the most commonly identified liver infection in the world. It travels to the liver via the bloodstream and infects the liver, triggering an immune response by the body. Up to 10% of people infected as adults and up to 90% of those infected as young infants develop chronic hep B infections.
More information about Hepatitis B	Hepatitis Australia – Hep B Facts Hepatitis Australia – Hep B	Immunise Health Handbook – Hepatitis B
Influenza	Infections can range from mild to severe and can include tiredness, fevers, chills, headaches, loss of appetite, muscle pain, cough, runny or blocked nose, sneezing, and can also include organ failure or death, even in otherwise healthy people. Complications such as bronchitis, croup, ear infections, pneumonia, heart complications such as myocarditis and pericarditis, encephalitis, and Reye syndrome.	The flu is spread through coughing and sneezing, or coming in contact with infected tissues or surfaces. Influenza (flu) is caused by a virus which can be classified as types A, B and C. However, only types A and B generally cause disease in people. Influenza viruses have two proteins on their surface which help the virus attach to the host during infection (haemagglutinin (H)) and to release new viral cells (neuraminidase (N)). It is the combination of these proteins that gives different strains of influenza their name (such as A(H3N2)), and the different combinations of these proteins are the reason that the flu vaccine is reviewed every year, to ensure that it offers protection against the predominant strains circulating that year. The impact of the flu is considered to be underestimated, and it’s believed that around 13,500 people are hospitalised in Australia each year due to the flu or complications related to infection, and around 3,000 people aged over 50 die from the flu each year. The flu particularly impacts the elderly and very young children under 5 years old.
More information about Influenza	ISG.org.au Immunise Health – Influenza	Influenza Centre.org Immunise Health Handbook – Influenza
Japanese encephalitis	Japanese encephalitis is a disease caused by a virus transmitted by mosquitoes. The incubation period is generally between 5 and 15 days. It presents as an acute or sudden onset neurological illness, with headache, fever, convulsions, neurological symptoms and lowered or loss of consciousness. The disease has a high case-fatality rate of around 30% and around 50% of those who recover have a high rate of long lasting effects. It is also possible to have an asymptomatic infection.	The disease is found in many parts of Asia, including India, Southeast Asia, China, eastern Indonesia (including Bali) and Papua New Guinea. Cases have also been recorded in the Torres Strait and North Queensland. To date, there have been five cases acquired in Australia since the first in 1995. Since 2001, nine cases have been identified in Australia, with all contracted overseas. The disease is generally found in pigs and wading birds, and is spread between these animals by mosquitoes. Infection of humans usually occurs when in close proximity to these type of animals, such as rural areas with flooded rice fields which provide breeding grounds for the mosquitoes.
More information about Japanese encephalitis	CDC – Japanese Encephalitis	Immunise Health Handbook – Japanese Encephalitis
Measles	The incubation period for measles is around 10 to 14 days and the early symptoms during the onset period are fever, tiredness, a cough, a runny or blocked nose and sore red eyes which may include conjunctivitis. This period usually lasts around 2 to 4 days before the rash appears, usually on the face and upper neck before spreading over the body. Measles is considered a severe disease and often has complications such as ear infections, pneumonia and diarrhoea. Encephalitis can also occur and if it develops, around 10-15% will die. Many survivors suffer permanent brain damage. A further complication is subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) which can occur in people who have been infected with measles, and usually develops around 7 years after infection. It causes brain damage and there is no treatment and no recovery.	Measles is caused by a virus, which can survive for up to two hours in the air. It is a highly infectious disease which is spread through coughs and sneezes. Measles is no longer actively circulating in Australia, although cases do still occur – usually transported by people who are not immune to measles returning from overseas with the infection. Measles is still an issue worldwide, and in 2014 there were nearly 115,000 deaths recorded – that’s around 13 deaths every hour, and measles is one of the main causes of death in young children worldwide.
More information about Measles	Measles Fact Sheet	Immunise Health Handbook – Measles
Meningococcal disease	Meningococcal septicaemia and meningitis can be difficult to diagnose due to their sudden onset and non-specificity of symptoms, which can include fever, a rash, headache, a stiff neck, sensitivity to light, convulsions, aches and pains, being thirsty, vomiting or feeling nauseated. The disease is characterised by a rash which does not disappear when pressed, but this doesn’t always show up. Around 5-10% of people infected will die, even with treatment, and there can be long term side effects such as scarring, deafness, neurological issues and limb deformity.	Meningococcal disease is caused by a bacterium called Neisseria meningitidis which has 13 known serogroups. Five of these serogroups are commonly known to cause disease and vaccines are available for these five groups – known as serogroups A, B, C, W135 and Y. Infection with the bacteria can lead to invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) and can include septicaemia and meningitis. Other infections such as conjunctivitis, pneumonia and arthritis can also occur.
More information about Meningococcal disease	http://www.meningococcal.org.au/ Better Health – VIC – Meningococcal	Immunise Health Handbook – Meningococcal Disease
Mumps	Around a third of cases are asymptomatic, but symptomatic disease can range from mild to severe. Symptoms include fever, a headache, tiredness, muscle aches and pains and loss of appetite. It also causes swelling of the parotid glands around the mouth and in front of the ears in 60 to 70% of cases. Infected people are infectious for around 2 days before the symptoms first appear, but this may be up to 7 days before the swelling of the parotid glands appears. Severe complications are rare, but can include meningitis (around 10% of cases), mumps encephalitis (1-2 per 10,000 cases and a fatality rate of around 1%), mumps meningoencephalitis can lead to deafness, although permanent deafness is rare, orchitis (swelling of one or both of the testicles – occurs in between 15 and 30% of cases in males who have gone through puberty) although sterility is rare. Other glands and organs can also be affected. Infection with mumps during early pregnancy (in the first trimester) can lead to miscarriage, although it isn’t associated with congenital abnormalities.	Mumps is caused by a virus, called Rubulavirus, and has an incubation period of 12-25 days. It’s spread through coughing and sneezing saliva droplets, and also through contact with saliva and urine. Mumps is found worldwide. People born between the late 1960s and mid-1980s (particularly those born between 1978 and 1982) are considered to be at greater risk of mumps if they have not been vaccinated appropriately, as they may have missed out on exposure to mumps as a child as well as not receiving appropriate vaccination at the recommended time. Before vaccination, mumps was considered a childhood disease, but since 2000, cases in Australia have been mostly in the 20-34 age bracket. Between 1996 and 2006, 5 adults over the age of 80 were reported as dying from mumps.
More information about Mumps	SA Health – Mumps	Immunise Health Handbook – Mumps
Pertussis (Whooping Cough)	Whooping cough generally starts as a cold-like illness, with a runny or blocked nose, a mild fever and tiredness. A cough can develop quite early in the illness and gets worse over time, leading to uncontrollable coughing fits which can also cause the person to vomit or choke. In babies, the cough may not be present or may not seem severe, but they can be seen to stop breathing and to turn blue, as well as being lethargic and not interested in feeding. Whooping cough is most dangerous for babies under 6 months of age, with around 4-5 of every 100 babies under three months old who contract whooping cough dying from the disease.	Pertussis or whooping cough is caused by bacteria called Bordetella pertussis, and has an incubation period of 7 to 20 days. It’s highly contagious and in a non-immune population, one infectious person is likely to infect up to 90% of household contacts though coughing and sneezing. Often the typical whoop sound (caused when taking a deep gasp for breath after a coughing fit) isn’t present in people who have had previous vaccinations. The cough can last for up to three months, and also can cause sleep disturbance due to coughing, and even fractured ribs from the severe nature of the cough. It can also cause incontinence and burst blood vessels from the violent coughing fits. The disease itself is one that comes in a cyclical fashion, with peaks and troughs every three to five years. This is due to waning immunity, which occurs with both vaccination and infection with the disease.
More information about Pertussis (Whooping Cough)	NCIRS – Vaccinations Pregnancy Fact Sheet	Immunise Health Handbook – Whooping Cough

References

List of diseases for Vaccination

Department of Health – Therapeutic Goods Administration

Safety of Vaccines

Australian Childhood Immunisation Register

The Department of Health

Vaccine Preventable Diseases