Pediatricians Can Answer Your Measles Questions

 

By DONALD EASON, MD, and DANIEL HAIGHT, MD
Donald Eason, MD, and Daniel Haight, MD

As a parent, you want to provide the safest and highest-quality care for your child. So do we. Discussions about measles vaccinations are always a popular topic in our practice, and hearing about recent cases of measles in West Central Florida and elsewhere adds to parents’ concerns.

At Lakeland Regional Health, our Pediatricians and Pediatric Nurse Practitioner understand your concerns and want to be able to answer all of your questions. We are committed to providing the safest and most effective vaccinations for all of the children in our care.

The MMR vaccine (which protects against measles, mumps and rubella) has been well researched. One article presented by the American Academy of Pediatrics that we like to share with parents regarding the absence of any association between the MMR vaccine and autism can be found at http://www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/immunization_vaccine_studies.pdf. It does a good job of explaining the vast amount of research that has been undertaken to ensure the MMR vaccine is safe for children.

A lot of parents are curious why someone should vaccinate against measles if the vaccination doesn’t 100% protect them from catching measles. Even though the measles vaccine – and all vaccines – do not guarantee that the vaccinated child won’t become infected with measles, the vaccine will significantly reduce the likelihood of infection and, if infection does occur, the illness will usually be much milder than one experienced by an unvaccinated child.

It is important to make sure our community remains protected against measles, as measles still occurs throughout the world. The infection could be a few airplane trips away from arriving in larger numbers within the state of Florida.

What exactly is measles? The common complications that an ill child with this highly contagious germ can experience are:

  • Diarrhea, vomiting and high fever leading to possible dehydration.
  • Middle ear infection leading to earaches and hearing difficulties.
  • Eye damage called conjunctivitis
  • Pneumonia, a lung infection
  • Brain swelling in 1 out of 1,000 persons (called acute measles encephalitis)
  • Subacute Sclerosing PanEncephalitis (more on this below)
  • Death in up to 2 out of 1,000 persons

Subacute Sclerosing PanEncephalitis is a rare complication of a past measles infection. The unvaccinated child recovers from the common effects of measles months earlier but later suffers this horrible complication. Much of the child’s brain is slowly being damaged. This can occur anywhere from months to years after a measles infection and occurs in 7 out of 1 million children. Over the last 50 years, the number of SSPE cases have declined because of the success of vaccinations.

Symptoms to look for if you suspect your child has measles:

  • High fever
  • Extreme fatigue and malaise
  • Cough
  • Runny nose
  • Red eyes
  • Splotchy rash, which usually starts at the head and runs to the trunk and then spreads to the arms and legs

If you do suspect your child has measles, our Pediatric providers are here for you and your family. Parents should call us before coming to visit at 863.284.5000 for further instructions. It is dangerous to bring a possible measles sufferer into the waiting room of a clinic or emergency room.

If you have any questions regarding vaccines, please do not hesitate to contact us.

About the Authors

Dr. Donald Eason is a longtime Pediatrician with Lakeland Regional Health who serves as Medical Director of Outpatient Pediatrics for Lakeland Regional Health. Dr. Daniel Haight serves as Vice President of Community Health and Medical Director of Infection Prevention and Control at Lakeland Regional Health.

Share: