The Measles Vaccine

The Measles virus has long been an endemic disease in the human race, first being documented by a Persian doctor in the 9th century. From 1855-2005, it is estimated that over 200 million people have been killed worldwide by the virus.1 Before a vaccine was created, nearly all children before the age of 15 would be struck with a high fever, inflamed eyes, small white spots on the inside of the mouth, and a red, flat rash that covered the body. The development of a vaccine in 1963 was able to lower the number of individuals infected with this Measles virus. In 1968 Maurice Hillman improved the vaccine. Since then, the vaccine has helped save over a million lives per year.
The Measles virus is highly contagious and easily spread through the air
Pregnant women, children less than 5 years of age, and adults that are over 20 years of age are at the highest risk for this disease due to either their undeveloped immune system or their degenerating immune system as they age. Following this logic, people with compromised immune systems and comorbid diseases that fight the immune system, such as Leukemia and HIV infection, are highly prone to contracting Measles. Recently, data is showing that people who frequently visit countries such as the slum areas of England, Germany, India, and the Philippines are seeing a hike in post-Measles symptoms and exposure. Since these countries are in less developed regions of the world, there has yet to be much vaccination. Therefore, Measles is still very common, and the risk of being infected is relatively
Within this family, there are three genera of viruses, one pertaining to mumps and parainfluenza, the other pertaining to respiratory syncytial virus, and the third called the morbillivirus, pertaining to Measles. The virus is transmitted through direct contact. Generally, the virus spreads through contact with the host’s respiratory secretions. If a host has been infected with the virus and they cough or sneeze, the droplets that are secreted from their body contain the virus. Those droplets are highly contagious and remain contagious between 2-4 hours after being expelled from the body. The infection typically begins in the upper respiratory tract near the nasopharynx. Gradually, the infection travels from the nasopharynx down to the lower respiratory tract and from there to the regional lymph nodes. By the time the virus has reached the lymph nodes, viremia has occurred. Viremia refers to the spread of a virus throughout the body via the blood. The virus has a 14 day incubation period, in which all of this occurs. After the incubation period, the virus has spread throughout the body and the symptoms of measles begin to show. The symptoms begin with a high fever, cough, runny nose, and red watery eyes. Infected individuals often mistake these symptoms for the flu due to the similarity of the symptoms. However, 2-3 days after the initial symptoms, Koplik spots appear. One of the main defining symptoms of a