N.B. news: Whooping cough outbreak reaches hundreds of cases [Video]

As of Dec. 12, 831 cases of whooping cough (Pertussis) had been recorded throughout New Brunswick, making it the largest outbreak the province has seen since a spread in 2012 that infected more than 1.400 people.

The outbreak was first declared on June 27 for the Acadian Peninsula when 11 cases were confirmed within a two-week period. The outbreak grew to infect 141 people by late August, leading to the declaration of a provincewide outbreak. In a few months, the number of cases has more then tripled.

The majority of cases (64.6 per cent) have come from Zone 1, which encompasses Moncton, Salisbury, Shediac and other municipalities. Zone 6, which includes Bathurst, Tracadie and Caraquet, has made up for 14.3 per cent of all cases. All seven health zones have had several reported cases of whooping cough.

“Every five-to-seven years or so we tend to see an increase in pertussis activity,” says New Brunswick’s Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr. Yves Léger. …