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February 8, 2012

Rubella
(German Measles)

What is rubella (German measles)?

A respiratory disease caused by a virus.

What are the symptoms of rubella?

Rash and fever for two to three days (mild disease in children and young adults).

What are the complications of rubella?

Birth defects if acquired by a pregnant woman: deafness, cataracts, heart defects, mental retardation, and liver and spleen damage (at least a 20% chance of damage to the fetus if a woman is infected early in pregnancy).

How is rubella spread from person to person?

Spread by contact with an infected person, through coughing and sneezing.

What is the rubella vaccine?

Rubella vaccine (contained in MMR vaccine) can prevent this disease.

You do NOT need the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine (MMR) if:

  • You had blood tests that show you are immune to measles, mumps, and rubella.


  • You are a man born before 1957.


  • You are a woman born before 1957 who is sure she is not having more children, has already had rubella vaccine, or has had a positive rubella test.


  • You already had two doses of MMR or one dose of MMR plus a second dose of measles vaccine.


  • You already had one dose of MMR and are not at high risk of measles or mumps exposure.

You SHOULD get the measles vaccine if you are not among the categories listed above, and

  • You are a college student, trade school student, or other student beyond high school.


  • You work in a hospital or other medical facility.


  • You travel internationally, or are a passenger on a cruise ship.


  • You are a woman of childbearing age.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention


Last Editorial Review: 3/3/2008




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German Measles (Rubella)

Introduction

Children's health, or pediatrics, focuses on the well-being of children from conception through adolescence. It is vitally concerned with all aspects of children's growth and development and with the unique opportunity that each child has to achieve their full potential as a healthy adult.

Children's health was once a part of adult medicine. It emerged in the 19th and early 20th century as a medical specialty because of the gradual awareness that the health problems of children are different from those of grown-ups. It was also recognized that a child's response to illness, medications, and the environment depends upon the age of the child.

There are many aspects to children's health. Any organization of these aspects of child health is necessarily arbitrary. For example, the topics could be presented in alphabetical order. However, it seems most logical to start at the beginning -- with the factors that d...

Read the Children's Health article »







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