Another San Diego Baby Dies From Whooping Cough

By Joanne Faryon / Investigative Reporter

Published October 20, 2010 at 12:23 PM PDT

This story was published more than 14 years ago.

A San Diego newborn baby has died from whooping cough. The child was the 10th infant to die from the disease this year in California. This is now the worst whooping cough epidemic in 60 years.

A San Diego newborn baby has died from whooping cough. The child was the 10th infant to die from the disease this year in California.

There have been six times as many cases of whooping cough reported in California this year over last year, making this the worst whooping cough epidemic in 60 years.

Whooping Cough, or pertussis, usually peaks in summer months and tapers off by now. But that hasn’t happened.

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“I don’t think we know all the answers to why that’s happening I think part of it is an increased awareness in the community. But we’ll continue to monitor that and see where these cases go," said Dr. Dean Sidelinger, San Diego County’s deputy public health officer.

The six-week-old baby, who had been born prematurely, died last week after being diagnosed with pertussis at Rady Children's Hospital.

Joanne Faryon

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As an investigative reporter, Joanne Faryon worked with the team of journalists at inewsource, a nonprofit journalism enterprise embedded in the KPBS newsroom. Faryon has more than 20 years of experience as a journalist, working in a print, radio and TV. She previously worked in Canada and the U.S., specializing in investigative reporting. During her time at KPBS, Faryon served as reporter, host, and producer for both TV and radio. Among her many stories and investigations is the 2010 look into the effectiveness of the Whooping Cough vaccine. The series of in-depth features lead the Centers for Disease Control re-examine their reporting and change their guidelines. Faryon’s work has been honored by the USC's Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism with the Walter Cronkite Award for political journalism. The prestigious honor was for the Envision special, “Who’s Supervising San Diego?” – an in-depth look at the County’s Board of Supervisors. Faryon has also received an honorable mention from the National Press Foundation in 2010 for an in-depth look at the state's prison system as part of the Envision series. In addition, Faryon has earned two regional Emmys and several awards from the San Diego Press Club and the Society of Professional Journalists. Her Canadian honors include a Manitoba Human Rights award for meritorious service for her investigative work on the Ku Klux Klan and right-wing extremism in Canada. Joanne has a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Winnipeg and a creative communications diploma from Red River College.

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