Facts about Measles

Published: Monday | February 23, 2015 | 6:21 PM

What is measles?

Measles is a serious viral infection of the upper respiratory tract (breathing tubes) that causes a rash and

fever. It is extremely contagious and can even cause death in rare cases.

How is measles spread?

Measles spreads when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes spreading respiratory droplets or

airborne spray to another individual.

One can catch measles by being in the same room as an infected person, even up to two hours after the

person has left the room.

Almost everyone who is exposed to measles and never got the MMR vaccine will catch the disease.

Infected persons are most contagious three days before the rash develops on them.

What are the symptoms of measles?

Measles usually begins with a very high fever. The incubation period usually lasts from 10 to 12 days

between catching the virus and the beginning of the fever. Other symptoms may include:

 Runny nose, cough, pink/red eyes

 Rash consisting of tiny red spots and bumps starting from the head and spreading to the rest of

the body

 Bluish-white spots (Koplik's spots) on a red base inside the mouth

 Loss of appetite

 Tiredness

 Aches and pains

 Diarrhoea

How serious is measles?

Measles can cause a number of complications, especially in babies and young children. These include:

 Ear infections and deafness

 Febrile seizures (fever associated with fits)

 Pneumonia (serious lung infection)

 Lifelong brain damage

 Blindness

 Death

How is measles diagnosed?

Measles can be diagnosed based on the typical clinical appearance of infected individuals but can also be

detected by special blood tests. Other tests may be ordered based on the symptoms that are present.

How is measles treated?

There is no cure for measles and so treatment is geared towards the symptoms, to make the individual

more comfortable. These include medication for itching, fever, and other flu-like symptoms. Specific
treatment, like antibiotics, may be prescribed to treat complications of measles. In some cases the person

has to be hospitalised.

When should the MMR vaccines be given?

In the past it was recommended that the first MMR vaccine (MMR1) should be given at 12-15 months of

age and the second (MMR2) at four to six years. However, this has recently been changed. The new

recommendations are for the first vaccine to be given at 12 months and the second at 18 months.

The vaccine is safe and serious side effects are rare.

Dr Arusha Campbell-Chambers is a dermatologist and founder of Dermatology Solutions Skin Clinics &

Medi-Spas; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.

The accidental or intentional release of a major agricultural pathogen would have serious economic
effects, resulting in production losses, market declines, and increased unemployment in the food and
agriculture sector. Quarantines and restrictions on animal movement in the disease-affected regions
would paralyze the rural economy. Moreover, even a small outbreak of a serious animal disease
would prompt trading partners to impose strict embargoes on imports of livestock and animal
products that could carry the infectious agent.

Infectious disease is one of the few reasons authorized by the World Trade Organization for blocking
imports of agricultural products. Restrictions on trade may continue for up to two years, resulting in
lost sales ranging from millions to tens of billions of dollars Animal diseases can also have a major
economic impact.

We estimated the economic impact of concurrent measles and rubella outbreaks

in Romania during 2011–2012. We collected costs from surveys of 428 case-
patients and caretakers, government records, and health staff interviews. We then
estimated financial and opportunity costs. During the study period, 12,427
measles cases and 24,627 rubella cases were recorded; 27 infants had congenital
rubella syndrome (CRS). The cost of the outbreaks was US $9.9 million. Up to 36%
of households needed to borrow money to pay for illness treatment.
Approximately 17% of patients continued to work while ill to pay their treatment
expenses. Our key study findings were that households incurred a high economic
burden compared with their incomes, the health sector bore most costs, and CRS
costs were substantial and relevant to include in rubella outbreak cost studies.