Whooping cough continues to surge in the United States, with reported cases soaring to more than 32,000 this year — nearly five times the 6,500 cases recorded during the same period last year — marking the highest levels in a decade.

The United States has recorded over 32,000 whooping cough cases this year, compared with around 5,100 as of mid-December last year. Infants are most vulnerable to the bacterial infection. According to experts,

Whooping cough cases have reached the highest annual total in a decade and are more than six times higher than at the same time last year.

Holiday cheer is in the air, and so are infections. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, whooping cough cases in the United States are beginning to return to pre-pandemic levels.

There have been over 32,000 cases of whooping cough recorded in the U.S. in 2024 so far, the highest annual total in a decade. The big picture: Experts attribute the spike in part to a return to pre-pandemic levels — but the number of cases on record this year far surpasses the total from 2019.