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Medical Author:

John P. Cunha, DO, FACOEP

John P. Cunha, DO, FACOEP

John P. Cunha, DO, is a U.S. board-certified Emergency Medicine Physician. Dr. Cunha's educational background includes a BS in Biology from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and a DO from the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences in Kansas City, MO. He completed residency training in Emergency Medicine at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark, New Jersey.

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Medical Editor:

David Perlstein, MD, MBA, FAAP

David Perlstein, MD, MBA, FAAP

Dr. Perlstein received his Medical Degree from the University of Cincinnati and then completed his internship and residency in pediatrics at The New York Hospital, Cornell medical Center in New York City. After serving an additional year as Chief Pediatric Resident, he worked as a private practitioner and then was appointed Director of Ambulatory Pediatrics at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx.

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Medical Editor:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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Medical Treatment

Antibiotics are used to lessen the severity of whooping cough and make the person taking them noncontagious. Antibiotics are most effective if given early in the first phase of the illness.

The Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial Therapy recommends the following antibiotic treatments: a five-day course of azithromycin, a seven-day course of clarithromycin, or a 14-day course of either erythromycin or trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (TMP/SMX).

• Some strains of whooping cough are resistant to certain antibiotics. Symptoms worsen if this is the case.



• In addition to treating the adult or child who has whooping cough, everyone in the household should be treated prophylactically with antibiotics.



• All close contacts younger than 7 years of age who have not completed their primary vaccinations (including the DTaP to prevent pertussis) should complete this series with the minimum time between shots.



• Close contacts younger than 7 years of age who have completed their primary series but have not received a booster of DTaP within three years of exposure should be given the booster dose.



• Exposed adults should be vaccinated with Tdap (see the "Prevention" section below).



• Anyone with whooping cough should be isolated for five days after starting antibiotics or until three weeks after the onset of the coughing spasms if the person has not received antibiotic treatment.