Measles and vaccination
Medical doctors recommend vaccinating children and adults, given that there is a measles epidemic in Romania.
Leyla Cheamil, 13.05.2024, 13:50
Romania continues to face a measles epidemic, said the health minister, Alexandru Rafila. He stated that there are several counties that are more affected and, in general, outbreaks occur where there are communities with a low degree of vaccination coverage. Measles, he went on to say, is reported throughout the European Union, but in Romania probably more than in other countries, and this situation can be seen on the maps of the European Center for Disease Control. Minister Rafila encourages parents to immunize their children, as vaccination can be done at the family doctor’s office. Measles is an infectious disease that is easily transmitted, especially in unvaccinated children, but sometimes the evolution gets serious, and complications can occur. According to the Health Ministry, vaccination coverage with the first dose at the national level is 78%, and 62% with the second dose.
Doctors point out that many unvaccinated children end up being hospitalized with measles, and some of them develop serious complications, which can be avoided by getting the MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella) vaccine, which offers protection against three diseases. The vaccine is included in the National Vaccination Schedule and is administered free of charge. Although measles has been considered for a long time a childhood disease, specialists warn that adults can also get sick, and the evolution can be very severe, the patient needing hospitalization, as they can develop complications, the most dangerous being pneumonia and respiratory failure, as well as neurological disorders such as encephalitis.
Physicians draw attention, at the same time, to the fact that the disease is transmitted extremely easily in the family, in communities, and that one can get contaminated while waiting to be consulted in the hospital units. Recently, minister Alexandru Rafila has underlined that vaccination programs greatly reduce morbidity and mortality, especially among children. He made this statement in the context in which fewer and fewer parents get their children vaccinated through the national program, as the specialists found out. As to adults, they are not better in terms of vaccination. Currently, measles vaccination coverage is only 60%. In this context, doctors believe that the target of education programs in Romania must be vaccination across the lifespan. According to a recent study by the World Health Organization, vaccines have saved at least 154 million lives over the past 50 years, the equivalent of six lives every minute. According to the WHO, vaccines are among the most powerful inventions in history, helping to prevent diseases that were once feared. (LS)
