Cough and fever indicate measles virus

The number of measles diseases in Germany has risen sharply

02/12/2013

For the symptoms of runny nose, cough or fever, everyone first thinks of a normal flu. But it can also be a sign of measles disease. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in Berlin, there was an enormous increase in measles cases in 2013 and significantly more with 1700 cases than in November 2012. There were only 170 cases that were registered. For WHO, numbers are a cause for concern, being 20 times higher than what is considered acceptable.

The infectious disease, which is more likely to affect children, causes cough, eye inflammation, and high fever, in addition to their typical red patches of skin. In extreme cases, life-threatening complications such as lung and brain inflammation or internal dehydration due to severe diarrhea may occur. The measles virus is transmitted by direct contact or droplet infection.

In order to avoid spread, can only be vaccinated. Other treatment options do not exist. But in Germany the willingness to get vaccinated is decreasing more and more. A spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of Health said that legal regulations will also be considered if the vaccination rate does not rise despite educational campaigns. Then it could come to a vaccination obligation. In order to meet the demands of the WHO for a moderate rate of illness, the highest rate of 80 cases per year is likely to be registered in Germany, explains Dorothea Matysiak-Klose of the RKI in Berlin.

The number of measles diseases in Germany is constantly fluctuating. In 2001, more than 6,000 measles cases were registered. In 2004, there were only 123 and a year later, then almost 800 were counted again. "There was no improvement or deterioration," says Matysiak-Klose, looking back over the past few years. Precisely because measles is one of the most highly infectious viral diseases, contact with other people should be restricted as much as possible. This spring, there was already a major outbreak in Berlin-Brandenburg. There a fair visitor had infected many of the 30,000 guests. "After that, the virus was probably brought to Bavaria and caused an outbreak there too," says the expert. Bavaria and Berlin are leading the measles statistics this year, with almost 800 and 500 cases respectively. According to Matysiak-Klose, there was a major outbreak in France in 2011, which also led to many illnesses in Germany.

Small children and young adults particularly at risk
So just a simple cough or sniffing may be enough to transmit the virus. Since the immune system is weakened enormously, bacterial infections can additionally occur. In 20 to 30 percent of these are even deadly. Serious complications usually occur in children under the age of five and in adults over the age of 20. "Vaccination is the best protection against disease, not just for children, but for adults too," says a spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of Health. But not everyone sees it as a necessity. There are some parents who think that their children should go through measles, the spokeswoman said.

In order to increase the willingness to vaccinate among adolescents and young adults, the government must, however, expand the education work. Experts explain that children need two consecutive vaccinations to build up adequate vaccine protection. According to the Ministry of Health, this is the case in Germany with an average of 92 percent of first-year students. Ideally, according to RKI expert Matysiak-Klose, 95 percent of the total population should have been vaccinated. Under the title "Germany seeks the vaccination" launched a million-dollar campaign to inform about measles and vaccination.

Doctors are in favor of vaccinations
But there is also resistance. With the campaign "Germany burns the vaccination certificate" warn opponents on the Internet from possible vaccine damage. Children and juveniles demand that all children should be vaccinated in public schools and day-care centers. "At least anyone benefiting from a publicly funded institution should be vaccinated." The physician Ulrich Fegeler refers to this on the recommendation of his professional association. That it comes to a Impfplicht as in the former GDR, but consider the experts to be unrealistic, as they assume a wide range of education campaigns. (Fr)