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Last Updated: March 10, 2006, 04:19:35 AM PST

Whooping cough is on the rise in San Joaquin County, just as it is in the rest of the region and the state.

There have been 10 cases of the potentially fatal illness this year, compared with 13 in all of 2005, according to San Joaquin County Public Health Services.

In Stanislaus County, there have been 24 confirmed cases this year, said Sundae Maestas, spokeswoman for the Health Services Agency. The county had a dramatic rise in the number of cases last year, 110 compared with 13 in 2004.

Whooping cough, or pertussis, starts with cold-like symptoms and a cough that gradually becomes more severe over one to two weeks. In children and in small infants, the cough often occurs in spasms followed by a "whoop." Vomiting after coughing is common.

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