The Iowa Department of Public Health has temporarily stopped counting the cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, to allow doctors more time to treat patients.

Patricia Quinlisk, state epidemiologist for the Iowa Department of Public Health, said the counties are more concerned about trying to get the outbreak under control than officially confirming each case.

According to the ISU Thielen Student Health Center, there has been one lab-confirmed case of pertussis at Iowa State.

The student, who does not live on campus, is being treated with antibiotics.

Quinlisk said it is important for people to be aware of the symptoms of whooping cough.

“If they have a bad cough that is very deep and hard to control, or cough and vomit, or cough and whoop, which only happens in children, they should see a doctor,” Quinlisk said.

She said people with coughs should cover their mouths with a tissue or cough into their elbow to prevent spreading illnesses.

The number of people being treated for pertussis is different than the number of people who will be reported to the department, Quinlisk said.

A case is reported to state health officials when there is lab confirmation that the person has pertussis, has been exposed to the illness or has experienced an adequate amount of incubation time for the illness to develop.

“This is what happens with outbreaks — we need to spend time trying to get the thing under control,” Quinlisk said.

She said temporarily not counting the number of cases is a common procedure when there are so many occurring at one time.

Laura Knowles, staff nurse at the Thielen Student Health Center, said people who were in class with the infected person should not be too concerned, especially if they were more than three or four feet away because, at that distance, the risk of being exposed to the illness is low. She said people who were in close contact with the infected person have been notified by the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Knowles said there are students being treated for pertussis who do not have lab-confirmed cases of the illness but exhibit the symptoms and may have it.

She said there have been a number of calls from students who thought they could have been exposed to pertussis, and some of them are being treated.

Pertussis got its common name, whooping cough, because of the noise people make when they have it, Knowles said.

“It’s like a ‘cough, cough, cough’ and then gasp for air that makes this weird, high-pitched whooping sound,” she said.

The noise is more common and high-pitched in children because their voices are naturally higher, but adults can make the noise as well.

Anyone who has the symptoms of pertussis should see a doctor, Knowles said.

The only way to confirm a case is to have a nasal swab taken — a long Q-tip-like instrument swabs the back of the nasal passage — and sent to the lab, which typically takes three to seven business days to verify.

Quinlisk said the cases will eventually be reported and counted when most patients have been treated for the illness.

She said people who are being treated for pertussis should stay at home for the five days they are on antibiotics so they do not expose others.