Measles Outbreaks in 15 states - Scary

Cece00 wrote: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,379388,00.html

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At least 127 people in 15 states have come down with the measles, the biggest outbreak in the United States in more than 10 years, Reuters reported.

Cases started springing up in May, when more than 70 people in a dozen states became ill. According to federal health officials, most of the victims were not vaccinated against the highly contagious virus.

In a statement, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the outbreak has been traced to travelers who became sick overseas, returned to the United States and infected others.

The news comes on the heels of public health officials' stressing the importance of immunizing children.

"What concerns me is the trend of more and more people not vaccinating their children because of fears that vaccines cause autism — although no studies have proven this to be true," Dr. Joseph Rahimian, an infectious disease specialist at St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan, told FOXNews.com in May.

Last month British health officials said measles had become an epidemic in that country for the first time since the mid-1990s due to parents not getting their children vaccinated.

"With the whole debate about vaccines — and now parents due to their personal beliefs not vaccinating their children — what we are seeing now is that we are going to have these epidemic outbreaks throughout the country," said Dr. Manny Alvarez, managing editor of health at FOXNews.com.

"If this continues, we will see outbreaks throughout the entire developed world — something we have never seen before," he added.

The MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, and rubella) is the safest protection you can give your child against this virus, according to the CDC.

The agency recommends that children should be given their first dose of the MMR vaccine around 12 to 15 months of age. The second dose is recommended before the start of kindergarten, between the ages of 4 to 6.

The National Institutes of Health also recommends all adults 18 years or older born after 1956 should receive an MMR vaccine if they are uncertain of their immunization status or if they have only had one shot prior to entering school.

Measles is caused by a virus that normally grows in cells that line the back of the throat and the lungs.

"This is a very contagious disease," Alvarez said. "It's very difficult to eradicate once you have it."

Typical symptoms include:

— Coughing

— Runny nose

— High Fever

— Rash (which usually starts on the face and spreads to the rest of the body)

FAST FACTS: The Measles and Outbreaks

Measles remains a leading cause of death among children in poor countries.

"What you have to remember is that 250,000 children die from this virus every year," Alvarez added. "So, vaccinations have to be a priority for parents because at the end of the day if you get measles, you can live through it, but in some particular cases you're going to have complications."

About one in five measles sufferers experiences more severe illness, which can include diarrhea, ear infections, pneumonia, encephalitis, chronic neurological deficits and even death.

States with cases now include Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, New York, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Wisconsin and Washington state, as well as Washington, D.C., according to the CDC.

This latest outbreak comes eight years after the virus was declared practically dead in the United States, thanks to a vaccination program that began in the 1960s

punkeemunkee'smom replied: OMG! That is so weird that you post this....my mom is taking my little brother BACK to the doctor today because she swears he has the measles

Cece00 replied:
Oh, wow. I hope he is OK!

MommyToAshley replied: That's so scary. This is why I think that is it so important that children are vaccinated -- to protect those that can't be vaccinated for medical reasons.

MommyToAshley replied:
Oh goodness... I hope he's ok. Let us know how he is!

DVFlyer replied: Odd to me that there have been so many issues lately with diseases and food issues.

punkeemunkee'smom replied:
My mom and I just had this discussion a couple of days ago...but in the interest of NOT sounding like a crazy person I will keep the rest of those thoughts to myself!

DVFlyer replied:
That's why I stopped with just that one comment.

MyBabeMaddie replied:


...And to protect themselves!

Our Lil' Family replied: Wow, how scary. This is why I vaccinate....too scared not too, not scared enough not too....if that makes sense.

punkeemunkee'smom replied: Just a thought but I have all my vaccines and I am not immune to Measles...I had my titers done when I was pregnant as we are so close to Mexico it is something my OB does if you are planning any shopping trips to the border...Even if you had all your vaccines unless you have your titers done you don't know FOR SURE that you carry an immunity. And once again I will ask that it be remembered that there are a large group of children that have been harmed by vaccines. If there wasn't VAERS would not be in exsistence.

my2monkeyboys replied: That is scary - and sad. I hope everyone recovers quickly from it.

As for vaccinations as a whole, even though there is the terrible small occurrence of children being ill-effected by them, I think for the most part they are worth the risk. A very sad situation for those who were harmed by something meant to protect.

redchief replied: I know that there are parents here who have been convinced for some time, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, that there is a link between childhood vaccines and autism, and I'm sorry for our society that such ignorance can't be overcome. Most know my position as absolutely in favor of vaccines, but most don't know why I'm such a staunch advocate of vaccination. With this story coming out, and the chill of fear it causes in me, I'm going to share why I'm so pro-vaccine.

My mother had polio as a little girl. She was one of the lucky ones. Her diaphragm and lungs were not affected by the disease. Her legs, however, were not so lucky. She was crippled by polio at the age of five, and spent most of her young life on crutches, despite a team of doctors working very hard on far advanced treatments for their time (including muscle transplantation and intense physical therapy). In her early twenties, she managed, much on her own, to shed the crutches in favor of what I can only describe as a "funny walk." She hasn't experienced the pure joy of running since she was four. Today, at 71, she suffers from post-polio syndrome which, along with bone spurs in her neck, have pretty much confined her to a wheel chair. She was a lucky member of my family.

My father never knew his dad. He died when he was a very young boy. He was one of the earliest of our county's volunteer firefighters and in 1938, he accidentally fell from the rear step of the fire engine he was riding on. He was fortunate that he fell into a swampy area alongside the road and into a ditch. At least he thought he was lucky. Shortly thereafter he contracted typhus. While it was uncertain whether that event was the cause of his disease, testing of the creek he fell into during later years revealed that the homes in the area were polluting the creek with human feces and typhoid bacteria were identified in large numbers. My grandfather was dead shortly, and painfully after contracting the disease. My dad never knew him and I have only a picture to remember him by.

Abbie is right about titers as well. Vaccinations are not necessarily a guarantee of immunity for life. You must check to make sure your immunization is good. This came to light strongly several years ago when it was found that most of us who had smallpox vaccine as children were no longer immune to the disease.

I empathize with those who feel certain that vaccinations caused problems in their children and sincerely hope that the vaccine, and not something else, was the cause of their children's ailments, so that the accusing finger is absolutely on the right target. But I've read many of these stories, and while they're horrible in that children have suffered, I remain unconvinced that vaccines were the cause in most cases. Don't get me wrong - it must be assumed, and in very few cases, there is undeniable proof, that a vaccine was instrumental or causative in an adverse incident related to that shot, but in so many "adverse event" stories, there is too much doubt and too little proof that the immunization caused the child's malady. I am living with proof of the horrors of the diseases that the vaccines are working to eradicate, and I believe truly that the extremely low risk the vaccines pose is worth it. I only hope that enough people don't feel that the sky is falling that we can ensure the safety of our countries' children from the diseases that my family has been so affected by.

Cece00 replied:
I agree with you.

There is now an obvious direct correlation between dropping numbers of vaccinations and RISING numbers of outbreaks, and the evidence that vaccines cause things such as autism is not there.

My family has also experienced loss from lack of vaccines- my mother had a sister who died in infancy from tetanus. That is a completely preventable disease via vaccine. The vaccine was not widely available then. A very sad situation indeed.

I hope we'll see vaccination numbers rise so that we dont see more children getting sick with these diseases. It would be a shame for children to have to live the rest of their lives with the effects of preventable disease or even worse, to see children die of something preventable.

boyohboyohboy replied: I have been trying so hard to stay out of this thread...and I am so sure in the end I will again wish I had...
however....I just had to say, that its not fair or correct to blame these "outbreaks" on unvaccinated children....
there are more of the old childhood diseases reappearing from illegeal immigrants and other people traveling to countries where these diseases are more previlent, then from children who are not vax spreading them.
and its certainly easy to say, that all children should be vax. and only a FEW are harmed from the shots, if its NOT ONE OF YOURS THAT IS HURT.

most of theses diseases DO NOT leave life long effects after they have run their course, some of the vaccinations it is looking more and more like, DO..
I have a son who due to a very compromised immune system does not do well with the vaccinations...who had however handled some of these other illnesses just fine..
I do not know if it will ever be proven if some of the vax cause the autism or death or seizures or what ever else that they have said... but there is not one person who can with certainty say, that one vax fits all...
and its unfair to call those of us who do not vaccinate, ignorant!

I am a very educated woman, with an extensive medical background, who does take offense to that type of labeling..

I have chosen to not vaccinate my children on the same schedule or the same doses as the cookie cutter trend says too, but it certainly is not going to be their fault that diseases spread thru the country...nor will the die from this decision..

sometimes the tone on this board, and the plain out and out meanness to always be correct and put others down is enough to make me want to leave...

MommyToAshley replied: I don't think anyone called you ignorant. In fact, it sounds like you did your research. It sounds to me like you are vaccinating your kids but on a different schedule? Is that correct? I too spread out the vaxs and didn't let Ashley get more than two at a time.

It may be that the diseases are coming from other countries (either immigrants or from people that have gone over to other countries and brought them back). But, they are spreading because there are so many here that are not vaccinated (as evident by the rise in these diseases). And, some of these diseases DO cripple and kill.

I think that there are medical reasons not to vaccinate your child. There are a few select individuals that can't be vaccinated, but as I said before, that is why it is so important for the rest of the community to be vaccinated. To protect themselves and a vaccinated community is the only line of defense for those that can't be vaccinated.

My fear is that people don't vaccinate because they go on the assumption that it is related to autism. Instead of just joining in on the bandwagon, I hope everyone does their research and then makes an educated decision, considers the implications of their decision, and then decides.

As for autism, the evidence is pointing more and more to genetics as we learn more. They've narrowed it down to specific chromosomes. I just watched a special last week about how they've made so much progress in identifying the specific genes involved that they are close to being able to treat it before a certain age. I'll see if I can find an article about it.

Boo&BugsMom replied: Stacy, I think when Ed said I'm sorry for our society that such ignorance can't be overcome, he didn't mean anyone who chooses not to vaccinate is ignorant. I think he meant it more along the lines of people who are overhearing all the autism hoopla and not doing their own research to come to their own conclusions and choosing not to vaccinate based on all the assumptions about it are ignorant. I could be wrong, but I took it to mean that instead.

We had quite a few measle outbreaks around here as well. It is a fact though that all of the people around here who contracted it were not vaccinated or immuned. That to me, poses a big red flag. What if SO many people opted out of vaccines? I can just imagine the kind of outbreaks we'd have. Sure, it might have been traveling to foreign countries that brought it here, but those people that contracted it could have avoided it had they been vaccinated though. That is why we have them, in case things like this happen.

I respect anyone's choice in this matter and have met people personally who have been negatively affected by them so it's not my place to judge, but I am pro-vaccines for the most part. Especially considering that those outbreaks were close to us, I don't want to take that chance. If there as a way to tell how each of our bodies would react to the vaccines beforehand, I think the issue would be solved, but I suppose that's in a perfect world.

DVFlyer replied:
Not trying to argue.... I agree with you... but in your post, you mention we shouldn't blame these outbreaks on unvaccinated children, but then you mention illegal immigrants and such who ARE UN-vaccinated.

IMO- that is the problem. Un-vaccinated people coming here and causing these outbreaks. The US was very successful in ridding the population of many of these diseases, so the argument could be made that, even if we didn't vaccinate our own children, we probably would be safe.

The problem starts from people from countries where the diseases are still prevalent who don't vaccinate coming here and spreading the diseases.

So in the end, it IS un-vaccinated people/ children causing this.

MyBabeMaddie replied:
But in order to protect yourself from these immigrants or unvaccinated people, you should be vaccinated yourself so that you are not affected by the disease.

lisar replied:
I 100% agree

DVFlyer replied:
Absolutely.

redchief replied: First off, I never shy away from a good adult debate. In fact, I find I learn as much from those debates as I do in all the research that I do, because an issue is never really black and white. Most social issues, including whether or not to vaccinate, have plenty of gray area. That being said, I never called anyone ignorant, including those who have not responded in the thread, and I never will. I've also never called into question any single person's intelligence. The truth is, however, that despite overwhelming evidence that there is no link between autism and vaccines, a quick Google of the topic brings up over 675,000 sites. Shuffling through them reveals that the same arguments that have already been scientifically proven to be unfounded are still going strong.

If that was meant for me, I take offense. I neither wrote what I did to be mean, nor to "be correct." I wrote what I wrote because I believe I am correct in my thinking on the topic. I wrote what I did based upon my own experience and research, and meant no harm to anyone.

DVFlyer replied:
Science v.s. emotion.... guess which one wins out.