19

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

THE GORGE — North Central Public Health District’s (NCPHD) Health Officer Dr. Kathleen Wilder is warning Wasco and Sherman county residents to be aware that pertussis — also called Whooping Cough — is spreading in the community.

Pertussis is a contagious illness that can cause weeks, or even months, of coughing. Pertussis is most dangerous for children less than 1 year old. This has been a big year for pertussis. Already this year, more people in Oregon have tested positive for pertussis than in any year since 2018. In the past month, several people in Hood River and Wasco counties tested positive for pertussis.