Pertussis

 Data Sources 

• Case Counts: Public Health Ontario.  Query: Case counts of reportable diseases by public health unit and year.  Toronto, ON: Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion; extracted on January 16, 2025.
• Population estimates: Statistics Canada 2014-2022, IntelliHEALTH Ontario, Ministry of Health, extracted on April 23, 2024.
• Population projections: Statistics Canada, 2023, IntelliHEALTH Ontario, Ministry of Health, extracted on April 23, 2024.

More Information about Pertussis

• Public Health Agency of Canada: English and Français
• Ministry of Health Fact Sheet:  English and Français 

If you think you have pertussis (whooping cough), contact your healthcare provider or call Telehealth at 1-866-797-0000. Call ahead before going to a healthcare provider's office or hospital, so that they can prepare and protect other patients.

Reporting

Should one go to childcare, school, or work if they have pertussis (whooping cough)? 

Contact the Communicable Disease Control (CDC) program for specific recommendations. Stay home until you are no longer contagious. Exclusion may be required form work, school, childcare, or recreational/summer camp until an appropriate antibiotic has been taken for 5 full days. If no treatment is given, exclusion may be required for 3 weeks from the start of the coughing spell. Avoid group activities/social gathering and do not take public transit.

Note: Exclusion guidelines may differ for healthcare workers, those who work with vulnerable populations, childcare attendees or workers, and those who have direct contact with infants less than 1 year of age and pregnant individuals in their their trimester. Follow the direction of your healthcare provider, public health case manager, and/or occupational health at your workplace.

Vaccine Information 

Pertussis (whooping cough) is preventable by vaccination. Check your vaccination records or call the Vaccine Preventable Diseases program at 705-474-1400 or toll free at 1-800-563-2808, ext. 5252 to book a vaccination appointment or if you have any vaccine-related questions.

Family members and caregivers of infants and young children should get vaccinated if they are not up to date with their pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine. The vaccine is only available as part of a vaccine that also has tetanus and diphtheria vaccine in it; it may also contain polio vaccine depending on the vaccine required. Everyone should receive 5 needles in childhood, 1 needle in their teens and 1 needle in adulthood. The pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine is given at:

• 2, 4, 6 and 18 months of age
• 4 to 6 years of age
• 14 to 16 years of age
• 1 dose in adulthood
• in each pregnancy, ideally between 27 to 32 weeks of gestation

See the Adacel® Information webpage.

Healthcare Provider Information

Infectious Disease Protocol, Appendix 1: Pertussis (Whooping Cough)

Public Health Ontario's Pertussis (Whooping Cough)

Public Health Ontario's Bordetella - Respiratory - PCR

Public Health Agency of Canada: Pertussis (Whooping Cough) for Health Professionals