Pertussis cases top 5000 in the first 3 months of 2024 in the Czech Republic
Prague mayor under fire
Outbreak update
In a follow-up on the pertussis, or whooping cough in the Czech Republic, the Státní zdravotní ústav (SZU), the State Institute of Health reported an additional 1,044 cases during the past week, bringing the total for the first three months of 2024 to 5,297.
This is the highest number of registered cases of the infectious disease in the country in a single calendar year since the 1960s.
In 2024, 85 cases of pertussis were already reported in children under one year of age.
Most cases of pertussis in 2024 are reported from the following regions: South Bohemia (917) and Central Bohemia (768), followed by Vysočina (620) and the city of Prague (574).
To date, two pertussis deaths have been reported- a 62-year-old man from Náchod district in February and a 84-year-old woman from Chrudim district in March.
Out of the total number of 5,297 cases, 3,897 persons (73.6%) were vaccinated, SZU officials report.
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When asked about the meteoric rise in pertussis in the Czech Republic, Jana Kamanová from the Institute of Microbiology at the Czech Academy of Sciences said, “The situation is complex. One of the problems is that we had covid restrictions. Usually pertussis (whooping cough) would circulate throughout our population and induce immunity. But when we had covid restrictions in place, the circulation really decreased, so now people don’t have natural immunity and they are getting infected.
“But this is only half of the story. The rest of the story is that although we do have compulsory vaccination, the vaccine doesn’t protect against infection, it protects against symptoms. So if you get vaccinated, you do not develop severe whooping cough, but you still can get infected by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis which causes the illness.”
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Prague mayor under fire
The mayor of Prague, Bohuslav Svoboda, is in hot water after admitting to not staying home despite having whooping cough. Mr. Svoboda, a medical doctor by profession, is now facing a criminal complaint for spreading an infectious disease.
After losing his temper over a political matter, Prague Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda told members of the lower house’s Health Committee that he had no time for such nonsense as he had come despite just having treatment for whooping cough.
“I came because I’ve been on antibiotics for six days so I’m no longer infectious,” he said at Wednesday’s meeting, while audibly coughing – and admitting he was not well. The meeting had been running for about three hours and Mr. Svoboda had not had his mouth covered.
A colleague sitting next to him, Romana Bělohlávková, who like the mayor is a medical doctor, replied that the situation required him to at least wear a respirator.
The Civic Democrat mayor of Prague, who is 80 years old, is also a sitting MP and headed the Health Committee himself in the past.
Mr. Svoboda’s actions have sparked many comments since the story emerged, at a time when Czechia is facing levels of whooping cough not seen in many years.
Public health officials have confirmed that people with whooping cough have to stay in isolation until the end of their antibiotic treatment.