A measles epidemic in central Ohio ended after 85 cases in fully unimmunized children.

CNN
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Measles epidemic in central Ohio 85 sick children No children died, but 36 were hospitalized, Columbus Public Health officials said Sunday.

measles epidemic First reported in early Novemberof the 85 cases, all but 5 were under 5 years of age.

Central Ohio experienced a rapid outbreak of measles cases in November and early December, but the number of new cases identified appeared to slow during the winter holidays. Local health authorities waited until no new cases were reported within 42 days (2 incubation periods for the measles virus) before declaring the outbreak over.

“Although this milestone meets the CDC’s definition of end of outbreak, test results for suspected cases are still pending,” said Columbus health officials. Post to Twitter on sunday morning.

Public health officials are “sounding the alarm” by staying transparent about the state of the outbreak, informing the public how easily the measles virus spreads, and promoting the importance of getting young children vaccinated against the virus. Dr. Mysheika said he fought the outbreak with Roberts, City of Columbus Health Commissionerled the outbreak response.

“Furthermore, a family member of a person with measles said very loudly that they had made a mistake. They should have vaccinated their children. And I think that helped, too.” she said.

Experts recommend that children receive two doses of measles, mumps, and rubella (known as MMR) vaccines. The first dose is given between 12 and 15 months of age, and the second between 4 and 6 years of age. A single dose is about 93% effective in preventing measles in people exposed to the virus. Approximately 97% effective with 2 doses.

In the United States, more than 90% of children are vaccinated against measles, mumps, and rubella by the age of two. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Since the United States was declared free of measles in 2000, most cases in the United States have occurred in areas of low vaccination coverage against the virus.

Even if a disease is eradicated, an outbreak could still occur if an unvaccinated person travels to or from a country where the disease is still common, becomes infected and brings it back to the United States, bringing the virus into the community. Yes, the traveler can transmit measles to unvaccinated people.

“Although importation of measles cases into the United States is expected to continue, the risk of measles for the majority of the population remains low.” The CDC says on its website:“This is because most people in the United States are vaccinated against measles.”

When the outbreak started CDC sent a small team to Columbus to help track measles cases and identify how the virus is spreading. Once a new case was identified, health officials quickly determined who had contact with the person and whether the contact had been vaccinated against measles and, if not, had the disease. .

According to Columbus Public Health, about 90% of people exposed to unvaccinated measles become infected, and 1 in 5 people with measles in the United States are hospitalized.

“Overall, we had six CDC personnel help us on the ground at one point, and it was very effective,” says Roberts. “I think that has really helped slow the progress of this virus in our community.”

She added that the outbreak caught public health officials in Columbus off guard.

“After years of low MMR vaccination coverage in our community, we’ve never had an epidemic of measles, so we were surprised,” Roberts said. .

There was not a single community or demographic of people at high risk of measles infection or with low vaccination coverage in central Ohio. Rather, communities where families decided not to vaccinate their children A small area of ​​the country was affected by “spreading misinformation that the MMR vaccine was linked to autism,” which sparked an outbreak.

measles can spread in the air When an infected person coughs, sneezes, or touches an object or surface to share the germs.

Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, watery eyes, and a rash of red spots. Rarely, it can lead to pneumonia, encephalitis, or death.

Getting the recommended MMR vaccine as part of routine childhood immunizations can reduce the risk of measles, says Dr. Tanya Altmann. Calabasas Pediatrics A resident of California, he is the author of “Baby & Toddler Basics” and Adjunct Clinical Professor at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

“Measles is one of the most contagious viruses we have identified. If someone has measles and there are unvaccinated people around them, 90% You can get infected with probability,” she said, noting that all the children who were infected during the measles outbreak in Ohio were not fully vaccinated.

“If unvaccinated people just travel to an area and there is not enough vaccination coverage in that area, measles epidemics can occur,” Altman said.