State confirms fourth measles case at Children's Hospital (Pittsburgh)

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ^ | 4/3/2009 | Sadie Gurman

[Born Conservative]

Health officials said today that they are investigating a fourth case of measles at Children's Hospital, where the infection might have occurred.

A news release from the state Department of Health did not offer any information about the age or whereabouts of the latest infected person.

The department announced Tuesday that two Westmoreland County preschoolers and their 33-year-old father had been diagnosed with measles.

The health department said the exposure to measles might have occurred in the Children's Hospital emergency room on March 10, or between 8 p.m. March 21 and 11 a.m. March 22; between 6 p.m. on March 25 and 5 a.m. March 26; or between 5 p.m. on March 28 and 4 a.m. on March 29.

It might also have happened at the hospital's third-floor Ear Nose and Throat Specialty Clinic on March 23, according to the health department.

[goodwithagun]

Wonder if the kids were vaccinated.

[reformedliberal]

Or if the father was.

[goodwithagun]

He may have been. Vaccine immunity is not life-long.

[CGASMIA68]

another indication of our backward movements toward a 3rd world country.....Polio should be reemerging soon

[org.whodat]

Illegals

[BuffaloJack]

It this because some brain dead parent said, “I’m having my kid vaccinated because then they’ll be autistic”?

[kimmie7]

bingo.

[tlb]

I’ve paid little attention to the issue of childhood diseases, but has measles become so rare that a couple of cases warrants press coverage? With the MMR vaccine is it no longer considered a normal childhood disease?

[Jeff Gordon]

Wonder if the kids were vaccinated.

More and more parents are not vaccinating their kids. They are counting on the "herd immunity" to protect their kids. Trouble comes when a large enough portion of the herd is no longer immune.

[sausageseller]

He may have been. Vaccine immunity is not life-long.

Especially in children's hospitals where there are kids being treated with cancer. Chicken pox can be deadly to a host of children receiving cancer treatments.

[agrarianlady]

This was the title of an article on Yahoo/AP a few months ago: “Measles cases in the U.S. are at the highest level in more than a decade, with nearly half of those involving children whose parents rejected vaccination.”

Glenn Reynolds has been following the vaccination problems at Instapundit. Here is a search on “Vaccine:

http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/?s=vaccine

and one on vaccination:

http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/?s=vaccination

“VACCINATION UPDATE: MMR doctor Andrew Wakefield fixed data on autism. “THE doctor who sparked the scare over the safety of the MMR vaccine for children changed and misreported results in his research, creating the appearance of a possible link with autism, a Sunday Times investigation has found. Confidential medical documents and interviews with witnesses have established that Andrew Wakefield manipulated patients’ data, which triggered fears that the MMR triple vaccine to protect against measles, mumps and rubella was linked to the condition.” Good grief. How many people’s lives and health might this have cost? A lot:

Despite involving just a dozen children, the 1998 paper’s impact was extraordinary. After its publication, rates of inoculation fell from 92% to below 80%. Populations acquire “herd immunity” from measles when more than 95% of people have been vaccinated.

Last week official figures showed that 1,348 confirmed cases of measles in England and Wales were reported last year, compared with 56 in 1998. Two children have died of the disease.”

[angelcindy]

great....my daughter and grandaughter were there ...and she just found out shes pregnant...

[alexander_busek]

great....my daughter and grandaughter were there ...and she just found out shes pregnant...

But, of course, knowing of the possible danger of exposure to measles during pregnancy, she had already been long ago vaccinated, right?

Or was she relying upon "luck" to protect herself and her unborn baby?

All women of child-bearing age have a responsibility to themselves and their future children to get vaccinated.

Regards,

[Born Conservative]

another indication of our backward movements toward a 3rd world country.....Polio should be reemerging soon

Didn't ya know that the MMR vaccine causes autism? And that all vaccines are EVIL? /sarcasm

[Born Conservative]

I’ve been a nurse in Peds for over 20 years, and the last time I saw measles was when I had them in 1967(?). By far, it is no longer considered a normal childhood disease, yet there are outbreaks regionally each year.

The outbreaks (or cases) are probably a combination of parents believing the junk science on the web purporting various conditions (particularly autism) as being caused by vaccines, and thus, children not being vaccinated on time or at all, as well as the influx of unvaccinated illegals.

So I suppose this does warrant press coverage.

[Born Conservative]

When a women goes to the Obstetrician, do they check titers for immunity against Measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases?

[Born Conservative]

Is your daughter in Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh? If so, hopefully she’s immune against it and/or wasn’t in the area that was affected...

[angelcindy]

no she had to go there to get heart test done...which all turned out good...that was my grandaughter..

[Born Conservative]

Glad to hear she did well, and the test turned out good.