Czechia sees second highest weekly rise in whooping cough

Some 1,100 new cases of whooping cough were registered in Czechia in the past week, the State Health Institute said on Monday. It is the second highest weekly increase this year. Doctors have recorded a total of 6,397 whooping cough infections since the start of 2024.

Records show that the only year that has seen a higher number of cases was in 1959, a year after the start of compulsory vaccination.

Most of the current patients are between the 15 and 19 years old, with that age group accounting for nearly a third of the sick. So far, the State Health Institute has recorded three deaths related to whooping cough.