A highly contagious virus is once again impacting Kentucky schools.

On Friday, Lexington's Health Department said two cases of pertussis or whooping cough were confirmed.

One at Lexington Catholic High School and one at Bryan Station High School.

This is the first time the illnesses have been reported in school age children in Lexington in more than two years.

Kevin Hall with the Lexington Fayette County Health Department details what caregivers should be looking for.

And today's medical news.

A lot of people think of pertussis or whooping cough as being identified by that aggressive cough.

And while that usually comes 2 to 3 weeks into it a little later into the symptoms, it initially shows itself as being very much like typical cold symptoms.

So if you're a caregiver and your child has a cold head and won't go away, and particularly a nagging cough, so you're into a cough that's reached at two weak point, that's a good time to start making plans to talk to a primary care provider because this could be something that is more serious, like pertussis.

There is a vaccine for pertussis that is part of the regular childhood immunization schedule.

Now, just because you are vaccinated doesn't mean that you still can't get pertussis.

But what has been shown time and again is that the symptoms will be milder.

And so if you if you go online, do a Google search for a video of pertussis that causes so violent, anything that can be done to reduce the effects of that is important to do.

You hear stories all the time of people who cough so violently from pertussis that they can break a rib.

So think about kids.

Think about your elderly members of your family.

You want to make sure people aren't getting this.

If you're a caregiver and you don't know if your child has received the vaccine, reach out to your health department, whether here in Lexington or wherever you may be watching this to find out about that immunization schedule.

If you need the vaccine, give us a call here at the health department by same day appointment Monday through Thursday.

We'd be happy to help you if you qualify.