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Pertussis: Whooping Cough

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The disease I have chosen to research for this report is called Pertussis, or commonly known as whooping cough. It is scientifically known as Bordetella pertussis as that is the name of the bacterium which causes the disease. Pertussis is a highly contagious disease that infects an individual’s respiratory system and causes, irritation, inflammation, and severe coughing as the individual must take in deep breaths to produce their coughs, creating a “whooping” sound. Pertussis is caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis, the bacterium attaches to the walls of various cilia within the respiratory system and then releases toxins in the epithelial cells of the walls, which then disable the function of the cilia and causes inflammation within …show more content…
Their website is www.cdc.gov, their headquarters are located in Atlanta, Georgia and their contact number is 1-800-232-4636. Their website and services offer all kinds of statistics and information on not only Pertussis but on a variety of different diseases and illnesses. The CDC website offers information about the disease, fast facts, outbreak statistics, how to diagnose, treat and prevent diseases, materials to help everyone from the parent and child to the healthcare professional and they do research to further help educate and prevent people from acquiring serious diseases and illnesses. Another great resource that an individual can use to become better educated about Pertussis is the Orange County Public Health Agency. Their website is www.ocgov.com, their address is 333 W. Santa Ana Blvd. Santa Ana, CA 92701 and their telephone contact number is 855-886-5400. The services provided by the OCPH vary from that of the CDC. The OCPH provides basic information about diseases and illnesses within the orange county region but mainly focus on prevention and vaccines that are available to help prevent an adolescent from acquiring Pertussis in the first place. They are a great source for learning about who is at the highest risk for a specific disease, the types of vaccinations and medication available for that particular disease and where and who to contact within the Orange County and Los Angeles community. The OCPH website even offers contact information for various agencies that offer vaccinations and Tdap booster shots for Pertussis, in the Orange County

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