{"id":170684,"date":"2025-04-25T10:39:27","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T01:39:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=170684&#038;lang=en"},"modified":"2025-04-25T10:39:27","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T01:39:27","slug":"pertussis-cases-climb-third-straight-week","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/en\/news\/pertussis-cases-climb-third-straight-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Pertussis Cases Climb for Third Straight Week"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fukuoka Prefecture reported 102 new cases of pertussis (whooping cough) in the week ending April 20, marking a third consecutive weekly increase. The year-to-date total now stands at 490, already surpassing 2019 levels\u2014the highest recorded since tracking began in 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The bacterial infection, which causes persistent coughing, spreads through respiratory droplets and contaminated surfaces. Health officials urge thorough handwashing, proper mask use, and early vaccination, especially for infants starting at two months old.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Varicella (chickenpox) cases are also rising rapidly, with a 3.76-fold increase from the previous week. The prefecture is emphasizing routine immunization and basic hygiene measures to prevent further spread. <\/span><b>Source: <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.city.fukuoka.lg.jp\/hofuku\/hokensho\/kansensho\/sonota\/hyakunichiseki.html\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fukuoka City<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \/ <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www3.nhk.or.jp\/fukuoka-news\/20250424\/5010027978.html\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">NHK<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-167221\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/fnn_tenjin-intersection-nov_2024_WEB.jpg?resize=1400%2C1050&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Pertussis Cases Climb for Third Straight Week\" width=\"1400\" height=\"1050\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/fnn_tenjin-intersection-nov_2024_WEB.jpg?w=1400&amp;ssl=1 1400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/fnn_tenjin-intersection-nov_2024_WEB.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/fnn_tenjin-intersection-nov_2024_WEB.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/fnn_tenjin-intersection-nov_2024_WEB.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stay informed with the latest Fukuoka &amp; Kyushu news and events in English. Sign up for our <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/en\/mailmagazine\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">free weekly newsletter <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">today and never miss a beat. Opt out anytime, your privacy is our priority. Get the inside scoop with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/en\/mailmagazine\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Now<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Summaries based on public content, errors may occur during translation. Images credited independently. Send feedback using <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/en\/contact\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">this <\/span><b>form<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fukuoka Prefecture reported 102 new cases of pertussis (whooping cough) in the week ending April 20&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29305,"featured_media":167229,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","tags":[],"class_list":["post-170684","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","location-fukuoka-prefecture","news-category-general","en-US"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/170684","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29305"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=170684"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/167229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=170684"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fukuoka-now.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=170684"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}