Cheonan and Asan Cities See Surge in Pertussis Cases Classified as Second-Level Infectious Disease... Urging Additional Vaccinations

16 Patients Reported Mainly in Educational Facilities Including Cheonan High School
42-Fold Increase Compared to Last Year's Patient Cases in Chungnam Region

Recently, there has been a surge of pertussis cases, a Category 2 infectious disease, in Cheonan and Asan City, Chungnam. Along with vaccination, strict adherence to preventive measures is being urged.

Recently, in Cheonan and Asan cities of Chungnam Province, there has been a surge in cases of pertussis, a second-class infectious disease, prompting health authorities to urge thorough adherence to preventive measures along with vaccination.

According to Cheonan and Asan cities on the 21st, as of the 19th, the nationwide number of pertussis patients reached 2,543, showing a sharp increase of 194 times nationwide and 42 times in Chungnam compared to the same period last year.

Among confirmed cases, 59.2% are children aged 12 and under, and 25.2% are school-aged adolescents between 13 and 19, indicating an increase mainly among children and youth. In Cheonan, a total of 16 confirmed cases have been reported, including patients occurring in most educational facilities such as high schools.

Accordingly, both cities informed related organizations such as the education office about the occurrence patterns of pertussis patients, requested adherence to personal hygiene rules to prevent infections within schools, encouraged timely vaccination, and strengthened the monitoring system for confirmed cases, as most pertussis patients are children and adolescents and outbreaks occur in schools.

They especially emphasized the need for extra caution in dormitories or group facilities where people live and eat together.

Pertussis, a second-class infectious disease, is a respiratory infection characterized by starting with a runny nose or mild cough and progressing to paroxysmal coughing. However, recent confirmed cases often do not show typical clinical symptoms of pertussis and are detected with mild coughs.

A Cheonan city official stated, “Since pertussis infection poses a high risk of transmission to friends and family around the patient, it is essential to participate in additional vaccinations and, if symptoms appear, to wear a mask and visit a medical institution for treatment.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.