Vaccines save lives. This is something we all know and that science has been responsible for checking again and again. Diseases that previously devastated hundreds of lives have been controlled and even eradicated thanks to them. However, there are still people who are skeptical of them for various reasons and choose not to vaccinate, putting the rest of the population at risk.
In recent years, various measures have been taken to curb the anti-vaccine movement and continue to demonstrate how dangerous it is not to get vaccinated, as outbreaks of highly contagious diseases have occurred and can have fatal results.
Now, Due to a measles outbreak in New York, the Department of Health has ordered the families of unvaccinated children not to take them to schools in the areas affected by the disease.
They ask not to take unvaccinated children to schools
According to information on the NBC New York local news website, the Department of Health sent a letter to the directors of the schools that are in the areas affected by the measles outbreak, in which they are ordered to ask students who are not vaccinated to remain in their homes.
In total, there are 39 cases of measles in the areas of Williamsburg and Borough Park in Brooklyn, where communities of Orthodox Jews live and of which three patients are adults and the rest are children, whose average age is two years.
In Babies and more: Measles death in Jerusalem an unvaccinated 18-month-old baby: the first death from this disease in 15 years According to information from Fox News, it is believed that the outbreak began by an unvaccinated child who was infected with the disease during a trip to Israel, so They are requesting that all students who have not received the required number of vaccine doses do so, otherwise they will not be allowed to enter the schools, regardless of whether or not there were sick children in them.
Recall that some communities of Orthodox Jews do not vaccinate their children for religious reasons putting their lives at risk as it happened with an unvaccinated 18-month-old boy who died in Jerusalem last month. The first measles death in 15 years in that country.
This request It does not exempt those who were allowed not to vaccinate for medical or religious reasons, something that until now had been respectedWell, the most important thing now is to keep it from spreading to other people, so everyone should be vaccinated without exception.
The health department will be responsible for conducting audits in schools to verify that all students are vaccinated with the recommended doses, although they comment that so far they report that only 2% of children in orthodox communities are not vaccinated.
Why is it important to vaccinate
On previous occasions we have talked about measles outbreaks that are happening around the world, and that this year, they have broken records in Europe, with Ukraine as the country most affected by presenting more than 23,000 cases, an alarming figure. In the United States, measles is not as common thanks to vaccines, however it is not the first time we have known of an outbreak in that country.
We must remember something and be very clear: Measles is a highly contagious disease, which can present really serious complications and even cause death in people who are not vaccinated. It is caused by a virus and begins with fever, and then produces cough, runny nose and redness in the eyes. The next thing that appears is a rash with red dots, which begins in the head and extends to the rest of the body.
In Babies and more What you should know about vaccination if you travel with your baby to European countries affected by the measles outbreak When we say that it is highly contagious, it is because it spreads very easily through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It is so contagious that if a person has the disease, 90 percent of the people around them will also become infected if they are not protected.
From there the importance of vaccines and meeting all recommended doses (The Spanish Association of Pediatrics recommends the administration of two doses: one at 12 months and another as a reminder between 2 and 4 years of age), as contagion problems may occur if the second dose is not given.
Remember that It is our responsibility as parents to vaccinate our children, to curb measles outbreaks and any disease, and thus avoid unnecessary deaths, such as the one we shared a long time ago of an 18-month-old baby.
