The phenomenon is known as immunamnesia and can make people prone to other infections for several weeks to months. Studies have shown that it can take Two to three years After a measles infection for protection immunity to completely return.
“The measles virus is strongly immunosuppressive, which means that it bothers the normal function of many white cells in the body that fight other infections,” says Fennelly.
One of these infections is bacterial pneumonia caused by inflammation and fluid cultivation in the lungs. About one of five people who get sick with measles in the USA will be taken to the hospital, and each of 20 will develop pneumonia. In some cases, patients may need additional oxygen or intubation and ventilation support.
In A February 28 press conferenceRon Cook, Chief Health Officer at the Health Sciences Center of Texas Tech University, in Lubbock, described the hospital patients as serious symptoms, many of which also have dehydration and low oxygen levels due to inflammation in the lungs.
“Pneumonia is the most common cause of death in measles in young children,” says Edith Bracho-Sanchez, assistant professor of pediatrics at the Vagelos College of Physicians and surgeons at Columbia University.
Measles can cause serious complications in patients without immunity, especially in children under 5 years.Photo: Ezra Acayan/Getty Images
Measles can also cause a serious complication that is called encephalitis or swelling of the brain and can be fatal. Encephalitis can occur during an infection when the virus drives to the brain or after an infection if the brain ignites due to an overactive immune response. Encephalitis develop about a child of 1000 who get measles. The disease can cause cramps and in rare cases, deafness or intellectual disability.
The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) is the best way to protect against these complications. A dose of the vaccine is 93 percent effective against measles, and two doses are 97 percent effective. The first dose is recommended for children between the ages of 12 and 15 months, and the second dose is usually given between 4 and 6 years.
There are no antiviral treatments available for measles, and while vitamin A is often conveyed with infection, they do not prevent measles or kill the virus. “The infection itself can break down vitamin A in the body,” says Bracho-Sanchez. Both the World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend children who are hospitalized with measles, two doses of vitamin A, since vitamin A deficiency can increase the risk of serious complications. However, large vitamin -a cans can be toxic.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary for Health and Human Services, has proposed that treatment with liver oil that contains vitamin A shows “very, very good results” for measles patients. However, health experts warn that cod supplements can contain more vitamin A than the recommended daily amount and children can make sick if they take too much.
Bracho-Sanchez says that the best way to have adequate vitamin A values
Updated 3-11-2025 19:37 GMT: A false identification of a quote from Glenn Fennelly has been corrected.
