In the wake of discovering whooping cough and chicken pox among students College officials are urging sick students not to ignore their symptoms and to go to University Health Services (UHS) for treatment.

That's what Dan R. Tremitiere '02 did when he went to UHS to seek medical attention about two weeks ago after suffering through frequent, prolonged coughing fits.

"I was miserable," he said. "I was coughing all the time."

After two visits to UHS, Tremitiere was diagnosed with pertussis, the highly communicable and potentially dangerous disease commonly known as whooping cough.

He is not alone. A health alert sent by the Freshman Dean's Office (FDO) to proctors last week warned that a major infectious outbreak of the illness in Cambridge has spread to the campus. The proctors were urged to inform students to go UHS if they felt sick.

Donna Campbell, the infectious disease control nurse at UHS, first notified the FDO of incidences of pertussis among students, prompting the alert, which was distributed via e-mail.

UHS officials declined to comment yesterday, but according to the alert, most of the College community is at risk.

"Most students and most adults are not immune," the alert reads. "Immunity conferred by infant vaccinations is usually lost by the middle school years, and boosters are no longer routinely given."

The illness is treatable with antibiotics but "unpleasant and debilitating" if left untreated, according to the alert.

After two weeks the disease causes violent coughing, and if still untreated, can lead to such complications as brain damage, convulsions and pneumonia.

Tremitiere said he had been coughing constantly, but his UHS-prescribed antibiotics were working well.

"[UHS officials] told me [the disease] is `highly contagious,' but so far my roommate has been spared."

Jenn B. Monti '02 said she received the pertussis warning and is glad to have gotten the information.

"It's an annoyance," she said of the outbreak, "but it's good to know about it."

Kaitlyn M. Choi '02 and Brandon J. McKenna '02, however, said they had not yet received the e-mail message.