2012 was worst year for whooping cough since 1955

The United States just suffered its worst year for whooping cough in nearly six decades, according to preliminary figures released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Whooping cough ebbs and flows in multiyear cycles, and experts say there were at least 41,880 cases in 2012. The final tally is expected to be higher but is unlikely to surpass the nearly 63,000 illnesses in 1955, said Dr. Tom Clark of the CDC. Despite the high number of illnesses, deaths didn't increase. Eighteen people died, including 15 infants younger than 1.

Bogus 911 calls lead to arrest

A 51-year-old landlord who lived on one of Brooklyn's trendiest corners was so annoyed by street noise that he placed hundreds of 911 calls of bogus tales, including a subway explosion, to bring police to the scene, authorities said Friday. Louis Segna was arrested after police discovered that 403 phony emergency calls were made from his cellphone during the past two years, police said. Segna was charged with false reporting and reckless endangerment.

Escaped robber finally captured

The second of two bank robbers who escaped from a high-rise federal jail in downtown Chicago on Dec. 18 was captured Friday, authorities said. Kenneth Conley, 38, was arrested in Palos Hills in suburban Chicago, according to U.S. Marshals Service spokeswoman Belkis Cantor. Conley fled with Joseph "Jose" Banks, 37. They squeezed through a narrow cell window and scaled down about 20 stories using bed sheets. Banks was arrested two days later in Chicago.

Whooping cough (pertussis) is an infection of the respiratory system caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis (or B. pertussis). It's characterized by severe coughing spells, which can sometimes end in a "whooping" sound when the person breathes in.

It mainly affects infants younger than 6 months old before they're adequately protected by immunizations, and kids 11 to 18 years old whose immunity has started to fade.

Before a vaccine was available, pertussis killed 5,000 to 10,000 people in the United States each year. Now, the pertussis vaccine has reduced the annual number of deaths to less than 30. But in recent years, the number of cases has started to rise. By 2004, the number of whooping cough cases spiked past 25,000, the highest level it's been since the 1950s.

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Associated Press

What causes whooping cough? Whooping cough is caused by bacteria that infect the top of the throat (pharynx) where it meets the nasal passages. The bacteria bother the throat, which causes coughing.

Whooping cough spreads easily from person to person. When someone with the disease coughs, sneezes, or laughs, tiny drops of fluid holding the bacteria are put into the air. The bacteria can infect others when they breathe in the drops or get them on their hands and touch their mouth or nose. After the bacteria infect someone, symptoms appear about 7 to 14 days later.