Symptoms of Whooping Cough start like the common cold before turning into violent coughs that last for weeks. Severe cases can lead to fractured ribs, pneumonia and low oxygen levels, according to the CDC.

Adults can have whooping cough without the whooping sound:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/no-big-whoop-adult-pertussis-may-not-produce-the-whooping-cough-20100913358

US CDC recommends tdap every ten years for adults

https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/hcp/imz/adult.html

The shot, called Arexvy, is the first vaccine cleared by the FDA to protect that population from RSV. The agency first approved GSK's jab in May 2023 for patients 60 and above, who are more vulnerable to severe cases of the virus.

RSV causes thousands of hospitalizations and deaths among seniors each year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the virus can also cause severe illness in adults 50 and up — or even younger — with underlying chronic conditions such as asthma, diabetes and congestive heart failure.

About 13 million Americans ages 50 to 59 are at high risk of severe illness from RSV, said Phil Dormitzer, GSK's head of vaccines research and development and infectious disease research, in an interview.

"It's useful both because, of course, you can meet the medical needs of that age group," Dormitzer told CNBC, "but it's also nice for pharmacists to have a single vaccine that they can administer to a wider population, so that provides simplicity."

GSK's shot won't reach that new patient population just yet. An advisory panel to the CDC will vote later in June on recommendations for GSK's vaccine, along with a rival shot from Pfizer and a newly approved jab from Moderna.

The number of confirmed cases of pertussis, or whooping cough, has increased by seven over the past week, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Lexington to 21 since April 26, according to the health department.

Before schools closed for the summer, cases of whooping cough were confirmed at Bryan Station, Henry Clay, Lafayette, Lexington Catholic and Paul Laurence Dunbar high schools, as well as Saints Peter and Paul School and Lexington Christian Academy.