A team from the U.S. Centers for Disesase Control and Prevention has flown from Atlanta to Durango to investigate a spike in pertussis cases with unusual symptoms, according to the health department there.

The San Juan Basin Health Department says there have been 101 confirmed cases of pertussis, better known as whooping cough,  in La Plata County  since December 2008. That’s a significant portion of the state’s total for 2009, even though the Southwest Colorado region is largely rural.

Many of the cases are mild and don’t have the signature “whooping” cough the disease is known for, the San Juan health department says. The unusually high number of cases, atypical symptoms and difficulty in assessing the disease prompted the Colorado Department of Health and Environment to request help from the CDC.

The four-person team is interviewing people from past and current cases and working with health care providers to find a cause.

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