As a West Texas measles outbreak continues to worsen, experts are concerned an increase in nonmedical vaccine exemptions among schoolchildren could make such outbreaks more common.
Twenty-four cases of the highly contagious respiratory illness have been confirmed in Gaines County, all of them in individuals who have not received the vaccine that protects against measles, mumps and rubella. Twenty-two cases are children under age 18, and six are children under age 5, Texas Department of State Health Services said Tuesday.
The recent outbreak represents the highest number of measles cases in Texas since 2019, when the state reported 23 cases across a dozen counties. But experts worry outbreaks could become more common in Texas due to a rise in “conscientious exemptions,” or parents and guardians who refuse to get their children vaccinated for religious, moral or philosophical reasons. Nonmedical vaccine exemptions have soared over the past decade, and Gaines County has one of the highest opt-out rates in Texas.
“Medical experts have been telling me for a year that it was going to happen,” said Terri Burke, the executive director of the Houston-based nonprofit The Immunization Partnership. “It was just a matter of time.”
The first two measles cases in West Texas came about two weeks after the virus was found in a pair of Houston residents. Officials said the West Texas outbreak does not appear to be connected to the Houston cases, and no other cases had been reported in Houston as of Wednesday.
Declining vaccination rates are concerning because measles can cause severe illness, said Dr. Catherine Troisi, an epidemiologist at the UTHealth Houston School of Public Health. One in five unvaccinated Americans will need to be hospitalized, and one in 1,000 will develop brain swelling that could cause deafness or an intellectual disability, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In Gaines County, nine children have needed to be hospitalized for treatment, the DSHS said.
“This can be very serious,” Troisi said. “It is not a benign disease.”
[…]
Public health officials have set up measles screening sites in the area, [Katherine Wells, the director of Lubbock Public Health] said. Officials are also providing guidance to public schools, private schools and day cares.
“I hope this increases awareness around vaccines and shows why it’s so important,” she said.
The South Plains Public Health District, which serves Gaines County, set up a clinic to offer the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine amid the outbreak. More than 70 people have visited the clinic since last Thursday, SPPHD executive director Zach Holbrooks said in an email.
See here, here, and here for the background. And oh, wait, did I say 24 cases? That was as of, like, Tuesday. We’re now up to 48 cases as of Friday.
An outbreak of measles has spread to 48 cases across four counties in the South Plains region of northwestern Texas, doubling in scope from earlier this week, health officials said.
Most of the cases are in school-aged children, including 13 cases in children younger than 5 years old and another 29 in children between 5 and 17, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Friday. Thirteen people have been hospitalized to be treated for the highly contagious respiratory illness.
All 48 cases involve individuals who have either not received the vaccine that protects against measles, mumps and rubella, or whose vaccination status is unknown, the DSHS said.
Gaines County remains the epicenter of the outbreak, with 42 cases of measles reported there Friday. But there are now three cases in Terry County and two in Yoakum County, which border Gaines County to the north, and one case in nearby Lynn County, the DSHS said.
Houston also reported two measles cases last month, but officials have said they do not appear to be linked to the South Plains outbreak.
Officials working to contain the South Plains outbreak said earlier this week that cases may continue to rise before they subside. The DSHS offered a similar assessment on Friday.
“Due to the highly contagious nature of this disease, additional cases are likely to occur in Gaines County and the surrounding communities,” the public health agency said in a statement.
At least there haven’t been any more cases in Houston. I have no idea how high this number is going to go, but those first two cases were reported on January 29, so we went from two to 48 in just over two weeks. That sure seems like a lot. I don’t know how many of those 70 people at the South Plains Public Health District got themselves the MMR vaccine, but every little bit helps. This is going to burn until it runs out of fuel, and making yourself not be fuel is the best defense you have. Daily Kos has more.
I had measles before there was a vaccine. They can live with it; maybe polio will visit them next if they persist with their anti-vaccine beliefs. I knew someone who had polio and have met several others during my lifetime.
Measles should not be taken lightly. Here again is where vaccines are victims of their own success-few remember just how serious this disease can get:
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/measles-infection-symptoms-longterm-risks-rcna138583
“ For every 10,000 children infected with measles, 2,000 will be hospitalized; 1,000 will develop ear infections with the potential for permanent hearing loss; 500 will develop pneumonia; and 10 to 30 will die, said Hotez, who is also dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine.”
“Measles also causes “immune amnesia,” in which the immune system loses its ability to fight infections that a patient was previously immune to, Cherry said. The virus wipes out 11% to 73% of a person’s antibodies — both those acquired through infection and vaccination — which can leave patients at increased risk from viruses such as the flu and bacteria that cause pneumonia and skin infections.”
While I have been vaccinated, I will be discussing potential risks on my next MD visit.
Their kids, their problems. Can’t fix stupid.