US Reports New Cases of Measles in Texas and New Mexico; This Is Why The Numbers Are Rising

Authorities in the United States said that an outbreak of measles in western Texas has expanded, with ten new cases confirmed and expanded to the nearby state lines in New Mexico. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, at least 24 measles cases have been identified in connection with the onset of symptoms within the last two weeks.

Authorities informed that Gaines, a small county in Texas, has one of the highest rates of vaccine exemptions in the state.

Meanwhile, an unvaccinated teenager in Lea County, New Mexico, has also been identified as a probable new case for Measles – apart from more children in a sixth-grade school gymnasium. “The New Mexico youth had no recent travel or exposure to known cases from the Texas outbreak,” the New Mexico Department of Health said in a news release. Officials said nine of the measles patients in Texas have been hospitalised, with all the confirmed cases in Gaines County involving unvaccinated residents.

According to the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been low immunisation numbers for other illnesses, including the flu and measles across the United States. Even though the declines and recovery vary by age, estimates range from 10 to 35 per cent decreases, including measles-containing vaccines.

Even though widely considered to be a world leader in healthcare, the US tends to fall behind in many of the other categories as well. The US had licensed the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) combination vaccine in 1971. By 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared that endemic measles had been eliminated from the country, largely due to more effective vaccination procedures and resources.

However, just eight years later, new measles outbreaks were reported, predominately the result of increasing numbers of unvaccinated individuals. Doctors say measles is so contagious that 90 per cent of those who come into close contact with an infected individual will develop the disease if they are not protected.

Doctors recommend two doses of the MMR vaccine for children and the first shot is given at the age of 12–15 months. They usually need the second dose when they are 4 or 5.

If your child has not been immunised, measles can still be prevented by receiving the vaccine within three days of exposure to the virus. If you plan on travelling internationally with your child, you can get them an early dose of the vaccine starting at 6 months old. You still must complete the other two doses later.

If you are an adult and unsure about whether you’ve been vaccinated against measles, you can still get the vaccine.

Measles or rubeola, is a viral disease that causes fever and a rash. It is highly contagious and spreads through the air when you talk, cough, or sneeze due to the morbillivirus.

There While there is no medical treatment for measles, you have to let the virus run its course.

According to doctors, the symptoms typically develop about eight to 12 days after you are exposed. However, there have been times that it takes up to 21 days to develop symptoms after exposure. The most common measles symptoms include:

A few days after these symptoms begin, you will also develop a red, blotchy rash all over your body, including the ace, which lasts about seven to 10 days.

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