Describe the three stages of pertussis.
Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial disease often known as pertussis or the 100-day cough. The initial symptoms, which include a runny nose, fever, and mild cough, are usually comparable to those of a regular cold, but are followed by weeks of intense coughing fits. As the person breaths in after a coughing attack, he or she may make a high-pitched whoop sound or gasp. Coughing can linger for ten weeks or more, earning the term "100-day cough." Coughing so forcefully that a person vomits, breaks ribs, or exhausts themselves is possible.
Pertussis is a highly contagious disease that lasts 6 to 10 weeks. Infants and others who have never been immunized against the disease experience more severe symptoms. The sickness can be classified into three stages: catarrhal, paroxysmal, and convalescent.
Pertussis has a 7-to-10-day incubation period. The symptoms of the first stage of the disease, known as the catarrhal stage, are moderate and might be mistaken for a common cold or influenza.
Coughing fits the paroxysmal stage of Pertussis. A sequence of coughs in fast succession with increasing intensity constitutes an episode, or "paroxysm." The series' final cough is followed by a big inspiration that sounds like a "whoop."
Pertussis' convalescent period begins about four weeks after the disease has been diagnosed. Coughing fits grow less frequent and less intense as time goes on. During this stage of the illness, a slow recovery occurs. Coughing fits might last for months at a time.
Step by step
Solved in 3 steps
