People with tetanus usually have to stay in the hospital a long time. In the United States, tetanus kills three out of every 10 people who get the disease. Since 1975, only 50-90 cases of tetanus have been reported each year. Almost no cases occur in children or young adults because they have taken the shots and are usually protected. It is easily passed from one person to another.
Pertussis can cause spells of coughing and choking that make it hard to eat, drink or breathe.
The coughing can last for several weeks. Pertussis is most dangerous to babies who are often so sick they must go to the hospital. As many as 16 babies out of 100 get pneumonia, and as many as two out of 100 may have convulsions. Pertussis causes brain problems that may last a lifetime in one of 200 babies. About 4,200 cases of pertussis are reported annually in the United States.