The Czech Republic has recorded nearly 15,000 cases of whooping cough, or pertussis, and six infected people have died since the beginning of this year, Xinhua reports citing the State Health Institute (SZU).

In its epidemiological situation report published on Monday, the SZU said the central European country has reported rising cases of whooping cough, a highly contagious respiratory disease, since the start of the year, with weekly cases surpassing 1,000 for nine consecutive weeks since March 18.

In the May 13-19 week, 1,383 cases were recorded, bringing the total to 14,832.

Local media say that this year's outbreak in the country of 10.9 million people has been the most severe since the 1960s. The outbreak is mainly attributed to less effective vaccines for teens and a decrease in overall vaccination rates.

According to SZU, out of the total 14,832 cases, 4,200 were young people aged 15 to 19 while 1,112 were not vaccinated and another 2,573 people's vaccination status was unknown.