A teenage girl from Tubuai has contracted whooping cough, the island’s mayor has confirmed. Until now, the Austral archipelago has been spared from this disease, which has been on the rise in the country since the start of the year.
The violent and persistent cough alerted the teenager’s mother. She took her sick daughter to the Tubuai Medical Center on Tuesday. The test results came back Wednesday evening: positive for whooping cough. The disease has been circulating in Polynesia since January 2024 and causes prolonged cough, sometimes asphyxiating in babies in particular.
The young girl is a boarder at the Diadème high school in Tahiti. She fell ill two weeks before returning to Tubuai for the vacation, according to her mother.
The doctor asked parents and their children to limit all contact with the outside world and to apply barrier gestures.
Returning to Tubuai on Friday, the island’s mayor assures that he will take the necessary measures, depending on the situation. The Health subdivision calls on the population to consult the island doctor in the event of symptoms (headache, cough, fever).
Steps were also taken to inform the education services and the establishment where the young girl attends school.
The Austral archipelago had until now been spared from the disease.
Click here to learn more about whooping cough.
Health
