Chandigarh, Oct. 31 -- The doctors at the PGIMER found a significant rise in infections among the children in North India, caused by a lesser-known bacterium called "pertussis", that mimics the whooping cough. "Pertussis", commonly known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious respiratory illness that has historically been a major cause of childhood mortality, with fatality rates reaching 10% in the early 20th century. In Asia, pertussis continues to pose a significant public-health burden, particularly in India and China primarily affecting young infants and children. After a brief decline during the Covid-19 pandemic, cases have sharply rebounded. India recently reported approximately 13.6 million cases, while China's incidence rose from 0.13 per 100,000 in 2013 to 2.15 per 100,000 in 2019, exceeding 58,990 reported cases by early 2024. The present study from PGIMER was spearheaded by Dr Vikas Gautam's laboratory at PGIMER, in collaboration with Dr Prabhu Patil of CSIR-IMTECH, Chandigarh. The study, published in the Emerging Infectious Diseases journal (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, USA), has analysed 935 suspected pertussis cases between 2019 and 2023. Researchers discovered that nearly 37% of infections were caused by Bordetella holmesii - surpassing the number of conventional infections from Bordetella pertussis. The most significant increase was recorded in 2023, predominantly among children aged five to 10 years in northern India. As per the data at PGIMER since 2015, the prevalence of B pertussis has declined from 15-20% to just 2-5%, while infections from B holmesii have risen markedly. This shift signals an evolving pattern in the etiology of pertussis-like respiratory illness in the region.htc...