A measles outbreak in New York that persisted for nearly an entire year finally was declared over last week. With that declaration, the United States narrowly held onto its measles elimination status, a 19-year distinction considered a historic public health achievement. But the outbreaks in New York City and nearby Rockland County nearly wiped that away. The World Health Organization considers measles eliminated when endemic virus transmission is absent in a country for at least 12 months. That doesn’t mean outbreaks can’t occur. Rather, the source of those outbreaks stem from someone contracting the virus elsewhere and then traveling into the United States. The elimination status can be lost when an outbreak continues for at least a year. The outbreaks in New York ended just shy of that mark, enabling the United States to hang onto that status. Yet, the outbreaks – the largest of many witnessed across the country – showcased the vulnerability of unvaccinated communities. “It’s more contagious than the flu – and people generally know the flu is pretty contagious,” said Dr. Heather Clauss, an infectious disease doctor and the associate dean of faculty affairs at Temple University’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine. “If the majority of Americans weren’t… Read full this story
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U.S. barely keeps measles elimination status; should be eyeopener about importance of vaccines, doctors say have 283 words, post on www.phillyvoice.com at October 11, 2019. This is cached page on Gatofuns. If you want remove this page, please contact us.