During these last months part of our attention has been placed in respiratory viruses such as The fluthe respiratory syncitial virus (RSV), and other viruses typical of these dates. This must be added Other epidemics such as gastroenteritis, also common on these dates and the avian flu epidemic that is causing serious problems in the United States and also threatens our wild and corral birds.
While some of these viruses dissipate until next season, one returns with surprising strength: measles.
The outbreak in the United States. Several measles outbreaks in the United States have already left 93 cases detected and 23 hospitalizations. At least 86 of these cases have been associated with three outbreaks, being the state of Texas the most affected, the state in which the first cases were detected.
Some experts, such as Rekha Lakshmanan, of The Immunization Partnership, in Houston, see these figures such as the tip of the iceberg. “I think this will go worse before improving,” he explained in statements collected by Kff Health News.
Texas is one of the more than 35 states in which the vaccination rate is below 95%: According to estimates Of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the southern state has an estimated vaccination population of 94.3%.
By ages. CDC data indicate that most cases have occurred between children and adolescents: 28 cases in children under five years (30% of cases), and 48 cases between children and young people among five and 19 years (52%).
The measles virus. Measles is an infectious disease caused by a virus that especially affects the child population. It is a disease that spreads easily (at least among unbound people), through contact with nasal fluids, mouth or throat.
The incubation period ranges between 10 and 14 days after exposure to the virus, after which the symptoms. The most characteristic of them is a cutaneous eruption that lasts between four days and a week. The list of symptoms can include other varied such as red eyes, cough, fever, muscle pain or nasal congestion among others.
Measles is a potentially lethal disease in certain circumstances. Although complications are more frequent in adults, the main risk occurs in malnutrition contexts and is associated with vitamin A deficiencies, so it is developing countries that usually see mortality associated with this virus.
Vaccine. Measles had disappeared from many countries thanks to the effectiveness of the disease vaccine. Measles immunization is done through the known Triple viral vaccine or SPR (for the three diseases that it tries to prevent: measles mumps or mumps, and rubella).
The situation of measles in Spain. The situation is very different in Spain: so far from 2025, 110 cases of infection in Spain have been recorded according to the latest data from the National Epidemiology Center (CNE). As recently explained López Perea in an informative session organized by Science Media Center Spain, the cases registered in our country are due to small outbreaks with no more than a dozen cases due to outbreak.
Many of these cases are concentrated in Euskadi. The Basque Autonomous Community has counted 41 cases of the disease. The total number of cases implies that we walk to a rebound with respect to 2024, the year in which 217 contagios were recorded, explained Sergio Ferrer, of SMC.
Another substantial difference between the American outbreak and the shoots in our country is in the population affected by them. In the case of Spain, cases tend to affect adults and not minors.
95%. Spain has a good vaccination coverage against measles. The 95% figure is usually considered the limit of group immunity for this virus. In other words, a 95% coverage allows to stop the expansion of this virus.
In the 2019-20 academic year, the vaccination rate In American nurseries it was 95.2%. Today has passed to 92.7%. In Texas, although the rate is higher than the US average, the figure is still below the 95%brand.
According to the CDC data95 % of the cases detected occurred between unaccoured people or whose vaccination status was unknown. The remaining 5% occurred between people with a vaccine of the two that form the complete pattern.
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Image | CDC
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