- The New York City Department of Health released on Friday that 17 children have come down with measles.
- Measles is a highly infectious disease that results from virus.
- Others are rash all over the body, high fever, productive cough and bloody diarrhoea.
- Severe complications may arise and are often life threatening.
- At present there is no cure for measles though it can be prevented in the first place with the help of a vaccine.
On Friday, Mayor of New York City said that 17 children in the Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn have been infected with measles — a highly infectious rubeola, but for whose prevention there is a vaccine.
The affected children are of ages 7 months, 1, 2, 2.5, and 4 years old. One of the infections was of the first case in the United States; three of the other infections were contracted by children who traveled to Israel, where there is a “sizeable epidemic” taking place according to a statement from city health officials.
The virus has infected various learning institutions where some kids have not been vaccinated, or partially vaccinated, the statement added said, while no deaths have been reported in relation to this outbreak, some of the children have been admitted to hospitals due to complications.
Thus, incidence of measles among Orthodox Jewish communities of Brooklyn shows that it is necessary to get children vaccinated on time and discuss with parents how to prevent getting measles and endangering other children, acting health commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot said in the statement. “The Health Department once again stresses that those not vaccinated should do so now and particularly prior to international travel.” If your child is sick, for example, gets a rash or fever, you should call your doctor at once and do not send the child to school or child care.
This is what everyone need to know about the condition.
Measles is an acutely infectious disease, which is transmitted through viruses.
The disease is caused by a virus which resides in the nasal lining and throat of a person infected with measles, as stated by the CDC.
Measles for instance, when an infected person speaks, moves around or even coughs, sneezes the viruses could land on a surface or transported through the air. And the virus doesn’t die the moment it leaves an infected person’s body: According to the CDC, measles virus can survive in the airspace in the vicinity where an infected person has coughed or sneezed for as much as two hours. It can survive for several hours on surfaces according to the Mayo Clinic as well.
Measles is catch-as-catch-can; if another person breathes contaminated air or touches a contaminated surface and then the corner of his eyes — or the end of his nose — or his lips — the man will have measles.
It is said that if one person in the population contracts the disease, 90% of the population who has not developed immunity to the disease will be infected if exposed to the virus, CA-MRFS.
Measles symptoms surface seven to 14 days after a person has contracted the virus. The earliest symptoms that come with the flu are fever, cough, sore throat and runny nose, and reddish and itchy eyes. Two to three days later, small, white lesions might appear on the mucous membranes of the mouth, as well.
Like most viral diseases, rash appears in patients with measles three to five days after outbreak of symptoms. This often begins as red, flat patches of rash on the face that may spread downwards on the body as the CDC explains. The rash may also occur along with a fever; it will rise high above the normal temperature of 104°F.
Several days later, the fever disappears completely and the rash becomes less severe.
Other related side effects occur in some individuals who develop complications in addition to the listed symptoms of measles. The CDC says two of the disclosed complications of the condition include diarrhea and ear infections. Most people with measles can come down with severe and even fatal illnesses, such as pneumonia, a lung infection, or encephalitis, which is inflammation of the brain. These complications are more likely to occur in the children below five years and adults above twenty years. About one or two of every 1,000 children who contract measles will die from it, according to the CDC.
Measles are can be stopped through the use of a safe, effective vaccine
There’s no specific treatment for measles, according to the Mayo Clinic, but there is a way to prevent it: Vaccination.
A single dose of measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is 93% protective against the three diseases, the study shows. Two doses are 97% effective.
Measles specialists estimated that, before the measles vaccine was developed, 3-4 million cases of measles occur annually across the United States, with approximated 400-500 deaths annually according to the CDC. In the past, people died because measles infected the respiratory system but today the vaccine has reduced measles cases by more than 99 percent. But outbreaks are still possible when an infected person comes to the US from another country and becomes a threat if it reaches populations of people who have not been vaccinated.
The MMR vaccine has been in the crosshairs of the anti-vaccination movement ever since a frivolous idea that the shot leads to autism was spread. The famous study released in 1998 that suggested that the vaccine has a causal relationship with autism has been withdrawn, and every available fact negates the fact that vaccines cause autism.
