Trip to India suspected in rare case of German measles in N.D.

[trotsky]

http://www.startribune.com/local/19767369.html?location_refer=Homepage

North Dakota's Health Department was notified last week of a Cass County man who had a rash, and tests confirmed that he had contracted rubella.

The man, whose identity was not released, recently traveled to India, where he likely picked up the illness, state health officials said.

...

"As this case illustrates, many vaccine-preventable diseases are only a plane ride away," said Molly Sander, the Health Department's immunization program manager. "That's why vaccinations are so very important. Vaccinations are the safest and most effective way that people can protect themselves and their children from rubella and other diseases like measles and polio."

...

Rubella is usually a mild disease, but it can be severe. If a woman contracts rubella during pregnancy, it can cause severe complications to the fetus, such as miscarriage, fetal death or birth defects.

[lizerdbits]

1. I guess he should have checked with a doctor before traveling

Some of my coworkers went to a conference there earlier this year and got the live oral typhoid vaccine and prophylactic anti malaria drugs. As people who work with microbes, we're usually already up to date on everything routine.

[cosmik debris]

2. The article doesn't say whether the victim had been vaccinated.

But I can't imagine going abroad without taking the basic precautions.

Maybe he was afraid of catching teh autism.

[lizerdbits]

3. He could have been as a child.

Keeping up to date is recommended since protection doesn't last a a lifetime. They don't mention his age so he could have been vaccinated 40+ years ago (I don't know when that vaccine became available.)

I'm glad I had another MMR in the lobby of my freshman college dorm (we didn't have documentation on us that I'd had one of the 3 although my mom made sure we got everything) in case I come into contact with people picking up things abroad, especially with people creating disease reservoirs by refusing to get their kids vaccinated. Saves me a trip to the doctor to have titers done.

[newfie11]

4. I was exposed to a patient with measles in SD 2 years ago.

I got a call from the state public health nurse telling me I could not come back to work until I proved I had been vaccinated or had a titer done. I was 59 years old at the time. I did a mammogram on the person who later was discovered to have measles.
I have never had have the measles or the vaccine. I had to stay home for the 20 something days to see if I caught it. I did not.
The woman with the measles was in a ranching community and had not been out of state.