A case of pertussis, more commonly known as “whooping cough,” has been reported on the Island, according to the Inter-Island Public Health Excellence Collaborative.

Pertussis is a contagious disease with a severe cough. Symptoms can start with a runny nose, sneezing and a mild cough. The disease then develops slowly over a long period of time, according to Betsy VanLandingham RN, reportable disease case investigator for the MV Boards of Health.

“The first full week that someone is infectious and can spread it to other people there are usually no symptoms at all so that’s the real concerning part of this,” Ms. VanLandingham said.

The disease is treatable by antibiotics and the test consists of a throat swab, but pertussis vaccines are the best way to protect against whooping cough, the group said in a press release.

The most vulnerable groups are infants, who can’t receive their pertussis vaccine until they’re six months old, and women in the third trimester of pregnancies because it can be passed to their unborn child. It’s common to pair the pertussis vaccine with tetanus and diphtheria vaccines, known as Tdap.

“Most people live protected,” Ms. VanLandingham said.

The patient is recovering well, she added.