Measles

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

Mumbai has reported 11 fresh measles cases and one suspected death amid the outbreak of the viral infection in the city according to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.

Measles

• Measles is a childhood infection caused by a virus. Once quite common, measles can now almost always be prevented with a vaccine.
• Also called rubella, measles spreads easily and can be serious and even fatal for small children.
• Measles is a highly contagious, serious disease caused by a virus.
• Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family and it is normally passed through direct contact and through the air. The virus infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body. Measles is a human disease and is not known to occur in animals.

Signs and symptoms

• The first sign of measles is usually a high fever, which begins about 10 to 12 days after exposure to the virus, and lasts 4 to 7 days. 
• A runny nose, a cough, red and watery eyes, and small white spots inside the cheeks can develop in the initial stage. 
• After several days, a rash erupts, usually on the face and upper neck.
• Over about 3 days, the rash spreads, eventually reaching the hands and feet. 
• Most measles-related deaths are caused by complications associated with the disease. 
• Serious complications are more common in children under the age of 5, or adults over the age of 30. 
• The most serious complications include blindness, encephalitis (an infection that causes brain swelling), severe diarrhoea and related dehydration, ear infections, or severe respiratory infections such as pneumonia. 
• Severe measles is more likely among poorly nourished young children, especially those with insufficient vitamin A, or whose immune systems have been weakened by HIV/AIDS or other diseases.

Transmission

• Measles is one of the world’s most contagious diseases. It is spread by coughing and sneezing, close personal contact or direct contact with infected nasal or throat secretions.
• The virus remains active and contagious in the air or on infected surfaces for up to 2 hours. 
• It can be transmitted by an infected person from 4 days prior to the onset of the rash to 4 days after the rash erupts.
• Measles outbreaks can result in epidemics that cause many deaths, especially among young, malnourished children. 
• In countries where measles has been largely eliminated, cases imported from other countries remain an important source of infection.

Treatment

• No specific antiviral treatment exists for measles virus.
• Severe complications from measles can be reduced through supportive care that ensures good nutrition, adequate fluid intake and treatment of dehydration with WHO-recommended oral rehydration solution. 
• This solution replaces fluids and other essential elements that are lost through diarrhoea or vomiting. 
• Antibiotics should be prescribed to treat eye and ear infections, and pneumonia.
• All children diagnosed with measles should receive two doses of vitamin A supplements, given 24 hours apart. 
• This treatment restores low vitamin A levels during measles that occur even in well-nourished children and can help prevent eye damage and blindness.
• Vitamin A supplements have also been shown to reduce the number of measles deaths.
• WHO recommends immunization for all susceptible children and adults for whom measles vaccination is not contraindicated.
• Reaching all children with 2 doses of measles vaccine, either alone, or in a measles-rubella (MR), measles-mumps-rubella (MMR), or measles-mumps-rubella-varicella (MMRV) combination, should be the standard for all national immunization programmes.

Question: What are the symptoms of measles? List the steps for the prevention and treatment of this disease.