See Below
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Pertussis (Whooping Cough) Alert
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Things Your Mother Should of Told You
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“Don’t mess with Texas”
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Pertussis (Whooping Cough) Alert
Texas Department of State Health Services
NEWS RELEASE
Sept. 3, 2013
Pertussis Prompts Texas Health Alert
The Texas Department of State Health Services is urging people to make sure they’re vaccinated against pertussis after projections show the number of people sick with the deadly disease this year is on track to reach the highest level in more than 50 years.
“This is extremely concerning. If cases continue to be diagnosed at the current rate, we will see the most Texas cases since the 1950s,” said Dr. Lisa Cornelius, DSHS infectious diseases medical officer. “Pertussis is highly infectious and can cause serious complications, especially in babies, so people should take it seriously.”
DSHS issued a health alert today advising doctors on diagnosing and treating pertussis. The state health department also strongly encourages people to make sure their children’s and their own vaccinations are up to date. While infants remain the most at risk, people of all ages can still get pertussis.
DSHS has reported nearly 2,000 pertussis cases so far this year, and the annual total likely will surpass the recent high of 3,358 cases in 2009. There have also been two pertussis-related deaths in Texas this year, both of infants too young to be vaccinated.
To better protect babies, DSHS recommends pregnant women get a dose of pertussis vaccine during every pregnancy, preferably between 27 and 36 weeks of pregnancy. This helps protect the baby before he or she can start the vaccination series at 2 months old and helps keep the mother from getting sick
and infecting the baby. Fathers, siblings, extended family members, medical providers and others who will be around newborns should also be vaccinated. Many babies get whooping cough from adults or older brothers or sisters who don’t even know they have the disease. While symptoms are usually milder in teens and adults, pertussis can be life threatening for babies because of the risk of apnea, an interruption in breathing.
Pertussis is a bacterial infection that often starts with cold-like symptoms and a mild cough. After a week or two, severe coughing can begin and last for several weeks. Coughing fits may be followed by vomiting or a “whooping” sound, the reason the disease is also called “whooping cough.” Pertussis spreads easily through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes. People with pertussis are most contagious while they have cold-like symptoms and during the first two weeks after coughing starts.
Anyone with an unexplained, prolonged cough or who has had close contact with a person with pertussis should contact their health care provider. Early diagnosis and treatment may reduce the severity of symptoms and shorten the contagious period. Doctors who suspect a pertussis infection are required to report it to their local health department within one working day. Patients who have pertussis should not go back to work or school until they’ve completed five days of antibiotic treatment.
Parents are urged to check their children’s shot records to be sure they are completely vaccinated against pertussis and should keep infants, especially those less than 6 months old, away from people with a cough. Adults should talk to their medical provider about receiving a booster dose of the Tdap vaccine.
A link to the complete health advisory is below.
Pertussis-HealthAlert-090313.pdf
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THINGS YOUR MOTHER SHOULD OF TOLD YOU
1. Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugar cone to prevent ice cream drips.
2. Use a meat baster to “squeeze” your pancake batter onto the hot griddle and you’ll get perfectly shaped pancakes every time….
3. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.
4. To prevent eggshells from cracking, add a pinch of salt to the water before hard-boiling.
5. Run your hands under cold water before pressing Rice Krispies treats in the pan and the marshmallow won’t stick to your fingers.
6. To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature and roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing.
7. To easily remove burnt on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on the stovetop.
8. Spray your Tupperware with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato-based sauces and there won’t be any stains.
9. When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead and there won’t be any white mess on outside of the cake.
10. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it’s still cooking, drop in a peeled potato and it will absorb the excess salt for an instant “fix me up.”
11. Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.
12. Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it.
13. When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn’s natural sweetness.
14. To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh, but if it rises to the surface, throw it away.
15. Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
16. Don’t throw out all that leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.
17. If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.
18. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers. Just slice and rub raw potato on the stains and rinse with water.
19. To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area and you will experience instant relief.
20. Ants, ants, ants everywhere … Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march. See for yourself.
21. Now look what you can do with Alka Seltzer.
- Clean a toilet. Drop in two Alka-Seltzer tablets, wait twenty minutes, brush and flush.
- The citric acid and effervescent action clean vitreous china.
- Clean a vase. To remove a stain from the bottom of a glass vase or cruet, fill with water and drop in two Alka-Seltzer tablets.
- Polish jewelry. Drop two Alka-Seltzer tablets into a glass of water and immerse the jewelry for two minutes.
- Clean a thermos bottle. Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka-Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary).
- Unclog a drain. Clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka-Seltzer tablets down the drain followed by a cup of Heinz White Vinegar. Wait a few minutes, then run the hot water.
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“Don’t mess with Texas” credited for less litter!
AUSTIN, TX — Litterbugs apparently have learned a lesson from years of the iconic “Don’t mess with Texas” campaign to keep roadways clean.
The Texas Department of Transportation on Wednesday credited the anti-litter campaign with helping to reduce visible highway trash by more than a third since 2009.
Read more: http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?sectio…