By Kate Evans, The Morgan Messenger
BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and WHO are warning about the substantial rise in cases of measles and whooping cough (pertussis) in the United States and globally.
Health officials say inadequate vaccination rates globally has brought these childhood diseases back to the U.S. after this country had eliminated them.
Health officials advise that the best defense against getting measles and whooping cough is receiving the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and the DTap (diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis) or Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) vaccines for whooping cough or pertussis.
The Dtap vaccine is used for babies and children under age seven and Tdap is for children older than age 7, pre-teens and teens, adults and pregnant women.
