Lexic.us

Definition of Pertussis

1. Noun. A disease of the respiratory mucous membrane.

Definition of Pertussis

1. n. The whooping cough.

Definition of Pertussis

1. Noun. (pathology) whooping cough ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Pertussis

1. [n -TUSSES or -TUSSISES]

Medical Definition of Pertussis

1. An acute, highly contagious infection of the respiratory tract, most frequently affecting young children, usually caused by Bordetella pertussis, a similar illness has been associated with infection by B. Parapertussis and B. Bronchiseptica. It is characterised by a catarrhal stage, beginning after an incubation period of about two weeks, with slight fever, sneesing, running at the nose and a dry cough. In a week or two the paroxysmal stage begins, with the characteristic paroxysmal cough, consisting of a deep inspiration, followed by a series of quick, short coughs, continuing until the air is expelled from the lungs, the close of the paroxysm is marked by a long drawn, shrill, whooping inspiration, due to spasmodic closure of the glottis. This stage lasts three to four weeks, after which the convalescent stage begins, in which paroxysms grow less frequent and less violent and finally cease. Synonym: whooping cough. Origin: L. Tussis = cough This entry appears with permission from the Dictionary of Cell and Molecular Biology (11 Mar 2008)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Pertussis

Literary usage of Pertussis

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The ABCs of Safe & Healthy Child Care: A Handbook for Child Care Providers by Cynthia M. Hale, Jacqueline A. Polder (2000)
"pertussis in the Child Care Setting pertussis (whooping cough) is a very contagious and dangerous infection of the respiratory tract caused by the bacterium ..."

2. The Diseases of Infancy and Childhood: For the Use of Students and by Luther Emmett Holt (1897)
"pertussis is a contagious disease which prevails epidemically and in most large ... While in later childhood pertussis may be ranked as one of the milder ..."

3. Pediatrics: The Hygienic and Medical Treatment of Children by Thomas Morgan Rotch (1906)
"pertussis. pertussis (whooping-cough) is a specific infectious disease, highly contagious, affecting the respiratory tract, characterized by periods of ..."

4. A Treatise on the diseases of infancy and childhood by Job Lewis Smith (1886)
"pertussis. pertussis is an infectious disease attended and manifested by a catarrh ... With rare exceptions pertussis affects the same individual but once. ..."

5. Diseases of Infancy and Childhood: Their Dietetic, Hygienic, and Medical by Louis Fischer (1911)
"Empyema has been seen by me associated with pertussis. The heart must be carefully watched and cardiac stimulants given when weakness is noticed. ..."

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