Britain is facing a major outbreak of whooping cough, with three deaths in October, a health watchdog warned today.
So far 13 deaths of infants from the disease have been reported this year while the number of cases is by far the greatest this century.
Some 7,700 cases have been reported so far, with more than 20% of these in October.
The figure is 12 times the number of cases reported in 2008 when the disease last reached peak levels.
The government has begun vaccinating pregnant women in an effort to stem the outbreak.
The figures, from the Health Protection Agency, show some 1,614 cases reported in October compared with 1,118 in the whole of 2011.
In 2010 there were just 422 cases while in the first ten months of this year some 7,728 cases have been reported.
Dr Gayatri Amirthalingam, of the Health Protection Agency, called on pregnant women to ensure they are vaccinated.
Dr Amirthalingam said: "While there has been a decline in the number of infant cases it’s important to emphasise that it’s too early to see any impact from the pregnancy vaccination programme. Working with the Department of Health we are continuing to carefully monitor whooping cough activity to evaluate the success of the programme.
"Parents should also ensure their children are vaccinated against whooping cough on time, even babies of women who’ve had the vaccine in pregnancy – this is to continue their baby’s protection through childhood."
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