Measles Research Paper

Audience hook: In 2014, the U.S experienced a record number of cases of measles, mostly from the Philippines. Most were unvaccinated and most were from international travel.

According to the Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine Preventable Diseases textbook aka “The Pink Book” (2015) which was produced jointly by the Communication and Education Branch, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Measles is a paramyxovirus with the primary site of infection in the nasopharynx. It has an incubation period of 10-12 days. The first symptoms to occur are fevers (increasing stepwise 103-105 degrees), cough, runny nose and conjunctivitis approximately 2-3 days after exposure and last 2-4 days. The second part of the infection occurs approximately 14 days after exposure; which is evidence by Koplik spots on the oral mucosa. Then, 1-2 days later, a maculopapular rash develops along the hair line, face,

Measles was discovered in the 19th century by a Persian Doctor, but was not recognized until 1957 as an infectious agent in human blood by a Scottish physician. In 1912 measles became a notifiable disease and in the first decade that records were kept there was on average 6,000 deaths per year reported from the disease. (Center For Disease Control). There is no definite origination of measles but scientists believe that it dates back to the Roman Empire about the 11th and 12th century (NCBI, 2010). The first outbreak known in America was in 1657 in Boston,

Facts and figures available to study the epidemiological data for the outbreak of measles include gathering suspected and confirmed cases of this disease from the World Health Organization. This is done by gathering serum samples from all suspected cases to determine if a measles specific immunoglobulin antibody is detected. This particular disease lives in the nose and throat of the infected individual and is considered contagious for a period of four days before the rash appears and for a further four days after the sighting of the rash.

In early April 2013 a measles outbreak was discovered in North Carolina. By mid-May the outbreak had been identified in Stokes and Orange Counties via 23 active cases. Every case was linked back to a family that had spent 3 months in India and had not been vaccinated. By the 16th of April the state laboratory of Public Health was able to confirm the diagnosis, with the last known case being confirmed on May 7th. The investigation of this outbreak revealed 4 patients with a confirmed diagnosis that had received one of vaccination of the two part series. The other 19 cases had not ever been vaccinated.

Measles is virus with a single-stranded RNA and two membranes: a fusion protein that infuses into the host cell membrane and the hemagglutinin protein that absorbs the virus into the cells. The primary site for invasion is in the epithelium of the nares. Measles is highly contagious and very infectious because it is easily transmitted when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The virus can stay in the air or on surfaces for up to two hours and infect many people who inhale the infectious agent or touch a surface, then be introduced to a new host through touch to

Measles is an acute infectious disease occurring mostly in children, characterized by catarrhal and febrile symptoms and an eruption of small red spots; rubella. (Measles, dictionary) In the United States, Measles vaccine is given in early childhood. It is recommended that a child receives two doses of the vaccine before the age of 6 years old. First dose is usually given between the ages of 12 months and 15 months of age in the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine. The second dose is usually given between the ages of 4 years and 6 years old. (Measles, CDC)

Measles was at one time in the not too distant past, a killer of those that became infected. Measles has been around for centuries. The first published, written account of the disease was in the ninth century by a Persian doctor. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website on measles, it was not until 1757 that a Scottish physician, named Francis Home, proved that something infectious in the blood was causing the disease. By the early 1900’s, the United States began requiring every healthcare provider and laboratory to report all identified cases, with approximately 6,000 deaths being

The new trend of parents not having their children vaccinated for measles is causing harm to the child and contributing to future outbreaks of the disease.

In December of 2014, an outbreak of measles, which started in Disneyland, resulted in nearly two hundred people being sickened across the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The highly contagious respiratory disease spread for three months. Among those who contracted the illness, one developed severe pneumonia and multiple organ injury, while another suffered acute respiratory distress syndrome. So, why did an illness, which was purportedly eliminated sixteen years ago, experience a surge so dramatic that it caused more cases in 2014 than in the five preceding years combined? According to the CDC, the outbreak could be boiled down to one simple reason: “The majority of people were unvaccinated.” So while the California measles outbreak is a thing of the past, the fight to increase compliance with vaccinations continues. Although the benefits and safety of vaccinations are undisputed by the medical and scientific community, there are still sizeable groups of “anti-vaxxers” who refuse to vaccinate their children. These groups spread misconceptions, sometimes unknowingly, and become even more influential when coupled with the power of the internet and social media. Therefore, in order to increase compliance with routine vaccinations, the misconceptions of parents should be targeted, and legislation should be changed in order to prevent leniency and loopholes regarding vaccine exemptions.

The global use of vaccines has been very successful in reducing the incidence of infectious diseases and their associated complications. For centuries, infectious diseases were the most common cause of disability and death in the world. Until the 19th century, it was not known what caused these diseases and why some people became seriously ill with an infection while others were less affected.

The most effective way to protect a person against many diseases, such as measles, pertussis, polio, and chickenpox, is to get vaccinated. Doctors and scientists all over the world highly recommend vaccines and, being that they have spent years studying health, their recommendations stand reliable. Omer Saad, a professor and researcher who has been involved in many projects on vaccinations in foreign countries, believes that “vaccines are among the most effective tools available for preventing infectious diseases” (1). The implementation of this technology has brought huge decreases in disease rates. Correspondingly, The University of Pittsburgh has conducted research on infectious disease statistics since 1888 and found that over 103 million cases of life threatening diseases have been prevented since 1924 (Welch 2). The Journal of the American Medical Association also found dramatic drops in infections and deaths associated with chickenpox, polio, and diphtheria and attributes these decreases to vaccine technology (Welch 2).

Measles is caused by a virus known as Paramyxovirus which is highly contagious. About 85% of people that are exposed to the virus are infected by it and about 95% of those people infected by the virus will develop an illness called measles(Carson-DeWitt

The Latin name for measles is rubeola. The pathogen which causes the disease is a paramyxovirus, which is one of a group of RNA (ribonucleic acid) viruses. Measles is a respiratory disease caused by a virus, and also comes out in a rash. The virus enters the body via the respiratory system, and grows in the cells at the back of the throat and in the cells that line the lungs, from there it then enters the blood stream and circulates the body.

In the 10th century, a Persian doctor published the first written record measles. In his record, he states the differences between smallpox and measles. (Wikipedia, 2016) His work on Measles was one of the first scientific treatments of infectious diseases and bases for future research. Modern scientists suggested that measles might have come from animals (specifically cows), as the virus was highly similar to Rinderpest, which infected cattle. Measles virus has evolved in an environment where cattle and humans lived in close proximity. (Loving, 2016) It has now been proven that humans are the natural hosts of the virus and no animal carriers are known to exist. Before a vaccine became available in 1963, the measles virus infected nearly all children by the time they were 15 years of age (Pearce, 2015)Enders created the vaccine of the virus in 1963, and the Measles virus infects approximately 30 million people annually, with a death of 197,000, which occurs in third world countries. After the vaccine was invented, the number of measles cases was 80% less compared to the pre-vaccine era. Researchers are conducting research to find oral antiviral drugs to treat people exposed to the measles virus and