ONE in five confirmed whooping cough cases are infants under six months old, according to new Public Health Agency (PHA) figures which show infections rates almost three times higher than last year.
The agency revealed there have been 44 cases already this year as they reminded pregnant women to get the whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine between 16 and 32 weeks of their pregnancy.
There were just 16 cases in the same period last year.
The affected infants were too young to be protected by their routine childhood immunisations given at two, three and four months.
The disease can cause long bouts of coughing and choking, which can make it hard to breathe and can be very serious for infants under the age of one year, and fatal in young babies.
Babies born to vaccinated mothers are 90 per cent less likely to get the disease than babies whose mothers were unvaccinated.
One in three expectant mothers that delivered in Northern Ireland in 2018/19 did not receive the pertussis vaccine.
Dr Jillian Johnston, health protection consultant at the PHA, said the increase in cases is part of the "normal" cycle of the disease.
"Whooping cough continues to circulate in Northern Ireland and every three-four years it is normal to see increased activity, which is what we are experiencing this year," she said.
"However, babies under three months are too young to have received their routine childhood vaccinations and are at greatest risk of developing more serious disease.
"It is therefore really important that women receive the pertussis vaccine during every pregnancy so that their baby is protected against whooping cough in their first months of life."
Health officials say the best time to get the vaccine is between 16 and 32 weeks of pregnancy. The vaccine is given at GP surgeries via appointment.
More information can be found on www.pha.site/whoopingcough or from GPs and midwives.
