WARREN COUNTY, Ohio — Lebanon City Schools confirmed a case of whooping cough in a kindergarten student last week.
The Warren County Health District is now working with the school district to monitor for any additional cases and is reminding families what they can do to protect their school-aged children from the illness.
After the school district sent a letter last week to parents of students who shared the kindergartener's bus and classroom, the health district shared the signs and symptoms that usually present first, like a common cold.
WATCH: How the Warren County Health District is working with Lebanon City Schools
Chris Balster, health commissioner for the Warren County Health District, said to look out for the distinctive sound of the cough.
"You do start to see more of the coughing, and the reason it's called whooping cough is because it has a very distinct symptom of when you're in those coughing fits, the body tries to get as much oxygen as it can, so you end up having this very intense intake of breath that sounds like a whoop," Balster said.
Balster said whooping cough cases are not uncommon.
"Is it rare to see? No, it's not, and it's become more prevalent over the years," Balster said.
Since the pandemic, case numbers have gone up while vaccination rates among kindergarten students have dropped from 92% to 89% in Warren County, according to county data.
"It's hard to say if vaccination status is the driver of the increase," Balster said. "It plays a role."
When asked about why some families are opting out, Balster said the reasons are unclear.
"Individuals that we've interviewed from the 2025 2026 season indicated that they just refused the vaccination without a reason as to why," Balster said.
The health district says CDC-recommended vaccines are the main way to protect children from catching a severe case or spreading whooping cough to babies too young to be immunized.
Cases are currently down from this time last year in Warren County.
Anyone with questions or concerns should contact the Warren County Health Department at 513- 695-2097.
