whooping cough

Table of Contents

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images

Bordetella pertussis

Read Next

Marina Spelzini, a registered nurse, measures out an H1N1 vaccine shot at the Miami Dade County Health Department downtown clinic on November 3, 2009 in Miami, Florida. (influenza, swine flu)

When Was the Last Pandemic?

People wearing surgical masks (also called face mask or medical masks or safety masks) walk through the city center of Milan, Italy on Feb. 23, 2020. Coronavirus disease COVID-19 pandemic

How Do Face Masks Control the Spread of Disease?

Infographic on the Influenza Pandemic of 1918-19

Influenza Pandemic of 1918–19 Chart

Scanning electron micrograph showing the spiral-shaped bacteria of the genus Leptospira. These organisms cause leptospirosis.

8 Zoonotic Diseases

close up of 3d microscopic blue bacteria

What Was Life Like Before We Knew About Germs?

Discover

Los Angeles Police Department wanted flyer on Elizabeth Short, aka the "Black Dahlia," who was brutally murdered in January 1947. The FBI supported the Los Angeles Police Department in the case, including by identifying Short through her fingerprints that

America’s 5 Most Notorious Cold Cases (Including One You May Have Thought Was Already Solved)

Plato (left) and Aristotle, detail from School of Athens, fresco by Raphael, 1508-11; in the Stanza della Segnatura, the Vatican. Plato points to the heavens and the realm of Forms, Aristotle to the earth and the realm of things.

Plato and Aristotle: How Do They Differ?

Aphrodite. Greek mythology. Sculpture. Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love and beauty.

12 Greek Gods and Goddesses

New York NY/ USA- November 23, 2018 Hordes of shoppers throng the Macy's Herald Square flagship store in New York looking for bargains on the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday.

Why Is It Called Black Friday?

Casino. Gambling. Slots. Slot machine. Luck. Rich. Neon. Hit the Jackpot neon sign lights up casino window.

Brain Games: 8 Philosophical Puzzles and Paradoxes

Close up of books. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society

12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”

Adolf Hitler (Nazi, nazism, German leader).

9 Things You Might Not Know About Adolf Hitler

whooping cough: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As	pertussis

Photos

Bordetella pertussis

See All Images →

Topics

notifiable disease Bordetella pertussis pertussis vaccine DPT childhood disease and disorder bacterial disease cholera leprosy polio tuberculosis plague syphilis anthrax measles scarlet fever diphtheria

Key People

Baillou, detail of an oil painting by an unknown artist, c. 1580

Guillaume de Baillou

French physician

Quiz

A Yorkshire terrier dressed up as a veterinarian or doctor on a white background. (dogs)

A Visit with the Word Doctor: Medical Vocabulary Quiz

Hand washing. Healthcare worker washing hands in hospital sink under running water. contagious diseases wash hands, handwashing hygiene, virus, human health

Medical Conditions and Discoveries Quiz

44 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Health and Medicine Quizzes