Kenneth Glad
For some adults, a cough lasting months may not be ordinary post-viral irritation. An infection usually associated with children is now being reconsidered as a possible cause.
Whooping cough may be behind some long-lasting coughs in adults.
The illness, also called pertussis, is caused by Bordetella pertussis and spreads through coughs and sneezes.
England recorded a rise of more than 1,600 percent in whooping cough cases in 2024 compared with 2023, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) figures cited by the Daily Mail.
Although the infection is often linked to children, studies suggest about six in ten cases are now being found in adults.
Adults without the whoop
Professor Andrew Preston, a microbiologist at the University of Bath, told the Daily Mail:
“Whooping cough was once regarded as a disease of young babies and children, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that adults are affected too.”
In adults, the illness may look different from the severe childhood version. Many do not develop the dramatic breathing sound associated with the disease. Instead, the warning sign may be a cough that persists for weeks or months.
That matters because chronic cough is often treated as a difficult condition with no obvious cause. If pertussis is involved, the chance to limit the illness may come early.
Four difficult months
The newspaper described the case of Joanne Noton, 46, from Lincolnshire, who said her illness began with mild symptoms before the cough became severe.
“I was coughing so hard I was struggling to breathe,” she said.
Noton said she was not diagnosed early and later learned that prompt antibiotics may reduce the risk of the worst symptoms. She said the illness disrupted her life for months.
Experts quoted by the outlet said antibiotics are usually most useful in the first three weeks, when they can clear infection and reduce contagiousness. After that, coughing may continue even if the bacteria have gone.
Could adult vaccination help?
Symptom relief may include physical therapy, nerve pain medication such as pregabalin, or low-dose morphine under medical supervision.
Preston also argued that later-life vaccination should be considered, saying whooping cough may not usually be fatal in adults but can still be debilitating.
The renewed attention to adult cases could change how persistent coughs are investigated.
For patients, the message is not that every cough is whooping cough, but that a months-long cough may deserve a closer look.
Sources: Daily Mail, the UK Health Security Agency
