MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) - An outbreak of whooping cough has resulted in a record number of cases in Montana’s Missoula County.

The Missoula City-County Health Department reports 169 cases of whooping cough so far this year.

Health promotion director Cindy Farr says number of cases is unprecedented, noting the highest number of cases the county saw in the past was 23 cases in 2012.

Over the last three years the number of whooping cough cases in Missoula County included one in 2018, none in 2017 and four in 2016.

The county Health Department hired 10 nurses in to help contact people with whooping cough and try to curb the outbreak.

The agency encouraged caution for anyone showing symptoms of whooping cough, especially among children who are just returning to school.

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