WINNIPEG — Manitoba Health says a decrease in vaccinations could be to blame for a spike in cases of whooping cough this year.
Areas near Morden, Winkler, Emerson, Altona, Morris and Niverville have seen a combined 40 cases of the infectious disease this year.
Whooping cough is a contagious sickness, spread through the cough of an infected person.
It takes its greatest toll on infants.
The vaccine for the illness is only considered 80 to 85 per cent effective.
It’s administered in stages, multiple times before a baby turns two, and then again in a child’s early teen years.