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October 30, 2018 at 5am |
By CHARLES H. FEATHERSTONE Writer
MOSES LAKE – The Grant County Health District has confirmed the discovery of two cases of pertussis in Grant County, one at Moses Lake and the other at Grand Coulee.
The first case involves a student from Park Orchard Elementary School, with five family members also having pertussis symptoms and three "probable cases of whooping cough," the health district said in a press release.
The second case involves a student from Lake Roosevelt Elementary School in Grand Coulee, one of two schools in the Grand Coulee Dam School District.
"The exhibition letters were all distributed in the affected schools," said Heather Massart, Grant County District Health Information Officer. "It is possible that more cases occur."
Massart stated that district health officials were working closely with school officials and family members of sick students to provide "post-exposure prophylaxis" with antibiotics, and to ensure that all Students keep their children's immunization records up-to-date.
The Washington State law requires all children entering school to show proof of vaccination against whooping cough or not to be vaccinated.
Students who have not been vaccinated can be excluded from school in the event of an epidemic until the epidemic is transmitted, the district said.
"Any child with symptoms of whooping cough (cough) should be excluded immediately until a new cough assessment is completed," Massart said.
Whooping cough, also known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious disease that spreads through droplets that cough or sneeze and that are affected or inhaled. The first symptoms are runny nose, low fever, a break in breathing and a cough that worsens steadily over the course of two weeks.
"Students can spread diseases due to improper handwashing, undisguised coughing and staying close to each other," Massart said.
If you feel that you have symptoms of whooping cough or have been exposed, contact your primary health care provider or a Grant County Public Health Nurse at 509-766-7960.
Charles H. Featherstone can be reached by e-mail at [email protected].
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