The ManicaPost
Dr Tendai Zuze
IN the past few weeks, a lot of schoolchildren and some adults in Mutare developed an itchy rash and got flue like symptoms.
This, it seems, is because we are in the middle of a rubella outbreak! Rubella, also called German measles or three-day measles, is a contagious viral infection best known by its distinctive reddish rash. Rubella is not the same as measles, though the two illnesses share some characteristics, including the red rash.
However, rubella is caused by a different virus than measles and is neither as infectious nor usually as severe as measles. The signs and symptoms of rubella are sometimes so mild that they are difficult to notice, especially in children. If signs and symptoms do occur, they generally appear between two and three weeks after exposure to the virus.
They typically last about three days and may include:
Mild fever of 38.9 degrees Celsius or lower
Headache
Stuffy or runny nose
Inflamed, red eyes
Enlarged, tender lymph nodes at the base of the skull, the back of the neck and behind the ears
A fine, pink rash that begins on the face and quickly spreads to the trunk and then the arms and legs, before disappearing in the same sequence
Aching joints, especially in young women
The cause of rubella is a virus that is passed from person to person. It can spread when an infected person coughs or sneezes or it can spread by direct contact with an infected person’s respiratory secretions, such as mucus. It can also be transmitted from a pregnant woman to her unborn child via the bloodstream. A person with rubella is contagious from 10 days before the onset of the rash until about one or two weeks after the rash disappears.
An infected person can spread the illness before the person realizes he or she has it. Rubella is a mild infection. Once you have had the disease, you are usually permanently immune. Some women with rubella experience arthritis in the fingers, wrists and knees, which generally lasts for about one month. In rare cases, rubella can cause an ear infection, pneumonia or inflammation of the brain (encephalitis).
However, if you are pregnant when you contract rubella, the consequences for your unborn child may be severe. Up to 90 percent of infants born to mothers who had rubella during the first 11 weeks of pregnancy develop congenital rubella syndrome. This can cause one or more problems in the baby including cataracts, growth retardation, deafness, mental retardation, congenital heart defects and defects in other organs.
The rubella rash can look like many other viral rashes. So your doctor may confirm rubella with the help of laboratory tests. You may have a virus culture or a blood test, which can detect the presence of different types of rubella antibodies in your blood. These antibodies indicate whether you’ve had a recent or past infection or a rubella vaccine.
No treatment will shorten the course of rubella infection, and symptoms are so mild that treatment usually is not necessary. However, doctors often recommend isolation from others — especially pregnant women — during the infectious period.
In those instances when a child or adult is infected with rubella, simple self-care measures are required:
Rest in bed as necessary.
Take paracetamol to relieve discomfort from fever and aches. Tell friends, family and co-workers — especially pregnant women — about your diagnosis if they may have been exposed to the disease.
Avoid people who have conditions that cause deficient or suppressed immune systems like HIV and diabetes.
Tell your child’s school or child care provider that your child has rubella.
The best way to prevent rubella is through vaccination.
The rubella vaccine is usually given as a combined measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, which contains the safest and most effective form of each vaccine. This vaccine is available locally. Usually babies are protected from rubella for six to eight months after birth because of the immunity passed on from their mothers.
Vaccine is not recommended for:
Pregnant women or women who plan to get pregnant within the next four weeks
People who have had a life-threatening allergic reaction to the antibiotic neomycin, or a previous dose of MMR vaccine
Most people experience no side effects from the vaccine. About 15 percent of people develop a fever between seven and 12 days after the vaccination, and about 5 percent of people develop a mild rash.
Dr Zuze can be contacted at Highland Clinic on 020-66364 or [email protected]
