BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Department of Health said Wednesday that, while no new measles cases have emerged since two confirmed cases were reported in the state last month, six new cases of whooping cough were reported.

The health department said the new whooping cough cases were reported since May 2, bringing the total cases to 170 in 2025. That number has already surpassed 2024's whooping cough cases, where 154 people reportedly had the illness in the entire year.

"We need to understand the scope of the problem so we can really know whether or not there's an unusual number of cases occurring," State Epidemiologist Theresa Sokol said.

Two deaths have been reported among infants hospitalized with whooping cough, the first deaths reported in the state from the illness since 2018.

Whooping cough is a contagious respiratory illness caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis, LDH said earlier in May. People with whooping cough commonly have severe coughing fits, causing them to take deep breaths right after breathing, hence the "whooping" sound.

Infected people can spread the bacteria from the start of symptoms through about three weeks after coughs start, with infants being the most vulnerable.

Deputy Secretary Pete Croughan said they're encouraging everyone to stay up to date on their vaccinations including expecting parents. 

"One of the standard recommendations for adults that have previously been vaccinated is get vaccinated for each pregnancy so that will confer antibodies from the mom into that baby and which we think lasts up to 6 months," Croughan said.

On Wednesday, LDH said they concluded their epidemiological investigation into the diseases on May 9, adding that one of Louisiana's measles cases was linked to international travel and neither people who caught measles needed hospitalization.

The first patient was unvaccinated and the vaccination status of the second person is unknown, LDH said. Both cases were adults. No additional cases were identified.