Five babies have died after rapid rise in cases of whooping cough

Five babies in England have died after being diagnosed with whooping cough, health officials have said amid a rapid rise in cases.

More than 2,700 whooping cough cases have been reported across England so far in 2024 – more than three times the number recorded in the whole of last year.

New UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) figures show there were 2,793 cases reported to the end of March.

That compares to 858 cases for the whole of 2023.

The UKHSA said between January and the end of March, there have been five infant deaths.

UKHSA consultant epidemiologist Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam said: “Whooping cough can affect people of all ages, but for very young babies it can be extremely serious.

“Our thoughts and condolences are with those families who have so tragically lost their baby.”

In March alone, 1,319 cases were reported, according to the provisional data.

The bacterial infection, also known as pertussis, affects the lungs and breathing tubes.

Whooping cough can be called the “100-day cough” because of how long it can take to recover from it, and it spreads very easily.

There were 556 cases recorded in January and 918 in February.

Pregnant women are being urged to take up the offer of the whooping cough vaccine so they can pass on protection to their babies, which should last until they are old enough to get vaccinated themselves.

Between January and the end of March, 108 babies under the age of three months were diagnosed with whooping cough. Some 51% of cases during this period were among those aged 15 and older.

Health officials describe whooping cough as a “cyclical disease”, which means it peaks every few years.

With whooping cough this is every three to five years.

The last big increase was seen in 2016, but cases dipped to very low numbers during the coronavirus pandemic which means the current peak is “overdue”, the UKHSA said.

“For very young babies it can be extremely serious