BENTON CITY, Wash. – Health officials have confirmed cases of whooping cough at Kiona-Benton City School District.
According to both the Kiona-Benton City School District superintendent, Pete Peterson, and Benton Franklin Health District, warnings have been sent to parents of students in the school district.
Symptoms of whooping cough include shortness of breath, low-grade fever, and a persistent cough. The virus might present itself as a cold at first, yet coughing fits can last for weeks or months.
Dr. Steve Krager from the Benton Franklin Health District says they’re working closely with the district while the virus is present.
“We’re working closely with the schools to mitigate (and) prevent what we can, and notify people when appropriate,” said Dr. Krager.
While the health district did not disclose the exact number of cases, Dr. Krager explained that Whooping Cough has been prevalent in Washington State for some time.
“Unfortunately, we’ve seen a significant increase in those cases (in that disease) over the last year across the state,” said Dr. Krager. “I will say our region has not been hit as hard as others in different parts of the state. We’ve been a little bit lucky in that respect, but we also have seen more cases than usual, at least over the last few years.”
He also described why a notification is being sent out to all schools, with the primary reason being how difficult it is to contain the virus in these settings.
“It makes contact tracing just a little bit more challenging. So in those situations we will sometimes just do a school wide notification because pertussis, whooping cough is very contagious,” said Dr. Krager.
He also says a school-wide notification will also help raise awareness of the virus, giving staff, children, and parents time to react.
Dr. Krager advises practicing good hygiene and staying up to date on vaccinations to remain safe.