Press Release on Measles - Essay Sample

Introduction

The Department of Public Health confirmed yesterday that there are two new cases of measles at St Barnabas High School. Both cases were released after being hospitalized for 12 hours. The state and county public health officials recommend individuals who are not vaccinated to receive the vaccination in their nearest health care centers to help protect themselves and their families. The Department of Public Health is also collaborating with different stakeholders and partners to identify and implement appropriate control measures in affected areas.

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The way to care for yourself against measles is through vaccination. "The immunization vaccine is safe and effective, and protects the community against future outbreaks," said the commissioner. Those who were at St Barnabas High School on March 6th 2019 might have been exposed to the disease, and they are encouraged to check with their physician if they received or can receive an immunization before to protect themselves and their family against the disease. Individuals who are not sure of their measles vaccination status should check with their doctor while those who suffered from measles in the past or vaccinated are considered immune. Recent statistics illustrate that the United States has had the highest cases of measles in the last decade. Since 1998, all school children have received two doses of measles vaccination. However, there have been repeated cases every year since 2002 (CDC, 2018). It is estimated that about 5 million individuals in the US are infected every year. Also, among the cases reported, about 1000 suffered encephalitis, 48,000 were hospitalized, and 300 to 400 people died from measles (CDC, 2018).Further, as of January 31st, 2019, 78 cases of measles have been reported to the CDC in Washington, Texas, Oregon, New Jersey, Illinois, Georgia, Colorado, and California (CDC, 2018). The widespread measles in the US may also be caused by unvaccinated visitors and migrants who bring the disease and spread it across the American states. For example, in 2018, a total of 17 cases were experienced in New Jersey and New York respectively (CDC, 2018). These cases occurred primarily among the Orthodox Jewish Communities because they were unvaccinated. Other outbreaks were linked to travelers from Israel (WHO, 2014). In 2017, an outbreak of measles was reported in a Somali community living in Minnesota because they had poor vaccination treatment. It is estimated that visitors from abroad cause about 80% of measles cases (WHO, 2014). However, "the application of the measles vaccine has reduced cases of measles by 99% when compared with the pre-vaccine era," said the commissioner. As long as the rate of vaccination increases, the risk to Americans would remain low.

Measles is an infectious disease caused by a virus (Yeung, 2005). "It effortlessly spread from one person to another," cautioned the commissioner. Measles is very transmittable, and the virus lives within the throat and nose of an infected individual. It can live within the air for two hours, such that when breathed by healthy persons, they become infected (Yeung, 2005). Individuals with rashes and fever, and suspect it might be measles should avoid public setting to avoid the possibility of exposing others. Measles symptoms begin between the 7th and 21st days of exposure (CDC, 2018). It always starts with mild to moderate sore throat, red eyes, runny nose, cough, and fever. In addition, 3-5 days of suffering the above-motioned symptoms, the patient always have reddish-brown rashes on the face and spread to the feet, legs, arms, trunk, and neck. Tiny white spots always appear within the mouth. During this time, fever is always above 104 degrees Fahrenheit (CDC, 2018).

"Measles can be prevented and controlled through MMR vaccine," said the commissioner. The vaccine protects against rubella, mumps, and measles (WHO, 2004). The CDC urges that children need to get the vaccine between 12 and 15 months after birth and the second dose between the age of 4 and six years (CDC, 2018). In the US, the MMR vaccine is given at 12 months after birth and sometimes given to a child who is six months when traveling abroad. Adults need to have at least a dose of the measles vaccine during their life. However, some individuals need at least two doses of measles vaccine including international travelers, health care workers, and high school students. The "MMR vaccine is effective and safe and the MMR doses are 97% effective when exposed to the measles virus," said the commissioner. The vaccine does not lead to measles illness or symptoms. Fortunately, most people in the US who are exposed to the virus are not at risk of developing the disease because they are immune. They have had measles in the past or have been vaccinated before. However, to increase the number of vaccination especially among students in both high school and college, the distribution of measles vaccine is free in both private and public health care providers. Besides, there is a mandatory insurance plan for every child to cover for their immunization, and the government has increased monitoring in high-risk areas that may be prone to the measles outbreak.

References

Yeung, L. F., Lurie, P., Dayan, G., Eduardo, E., Britz, P. H., Redd, S. B., ... & Seward, J. F. (2005). A limited measles outbreak in a highly vaccinated US boarding school. Pediatrics, 116(6), 1287-1291.

Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), (2018). Measles: It isn't Just a Little Rash. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/measles/downloads/IntroToMeaslesSlideSet.pdf

World Health Organization (WHO), (2004). Treating Measles in Children. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/immunization/programmes_systems/interventions/TreatingMeaslesENG300.pdf