Mapped: Number of whooping cough cases in the North East

Characterised by coughing bouts, a sore throat and a runny nose, whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is a bacterial infection of the lungs and breathing tubes.

It spreads easily, and is often known as the 100 day cough.

A vaccine is available for the cough, and is administered to pregnant people to protect babies from the infection too.

So far this year, 2,793 confirmed cases have been logged in the UK - and a further 36 have been reported in the North East in the week ending April 12.

Here's a map showing where new cases are during that period in the North East.

This weekly total in the North East is triple the number of cases that were reported in the first week of 2024 - which was nine (GOV.UK). 

This then rose to 14 cases reported in the first week of February, 26 during the first week of March rising once again to 35 in the first week of April.

The rise in whooping cough cases comes as an expert has warned that more babies will die from whooping cough unless vaccination rates go up to slow the spread of the infection.

Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, consultant paediatrician and chairman of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, which advises the Government, said Covid lockdowns may have impacted on the rise in cases, particularly in older children and adults.

But he said the “biggest issue” is actually low vaccination rates, particularly among pregnant women.

Figures for England show 59.3 per cent of pregnant women between October to December 2023 were vaccinated against whooping cough, almost 16% down on the same quarter in 2016/17.

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London has particularly low rates, at 36.8 per cent.

The vaccine in pregnancy helps bridge the immunity gap from when babies are born until they themselves can be vaccinated.

Data for 2022/23 shows 91.8% of children have had their whopping cough vaccines by their first birthday, with experts saying this figure also needs to be higher.