US measles outbreak worst for 15 years
pharmafile | February 11, 2015 | News story | Sales and Marketing | FDA, cdcp, hamburg, measles, priorix, trimovax, vaccines
The worst measles outbreak in 15 years has reached a startling 121 cases in the US alone according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP).
Analysis conducted by the institute shows that the new epidemic is identical to the virus type that caused the large measles outbreak in the Philippines last year, which confirmed 21,403 cases.
Outgoing commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration Dr Margaret Hamburg this week via a blog post, urged that the vaccine for the infection “should be used by everyone who has not been vaccinated”.
She explained: “We’ve seen an alarming outbreak of measles – a highly contagious and serious virus, especially in babies and young children who have not been vaccinated.
“This outbreak is particularly disturbing because measles was effectively eliminated from the United States in 2000 thanks to nearly universal vaccination, the single best way to prevent the spread of this disease.”
One such vaccination is Merck’s M-M-R-II (attenuvax/mumpsvax/meruvax II) shot to treat against the spread of measles, mumps and rubella. The drug was introduced back in 1971 and updated seven years later, and is administered by a subcutaneous injection beneath the skin below the dermis and epidermis.
GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals has its own offering via Priorix – also used to treat chickenpox – plus Sanofi’s vaccine division Sanofi Pasteur has its Trimovax shot.
Around four million people were infected with measles every year before the introduction of the first infusion in 1963. Last year 644 people in the US developed measles which is the highest number of cases since 2000.
The alarming number of recent cases in the US has been linked to an amusement park in California. According to the CDCP the outbreak likely started from a traveller who became infected oversees, then visited the park while infectious. However the agency insists no source has been officially identified.
Hamburg, who will resign from her post at the end of March, insists that more than 95% of the people who receive a single dose will develop immunity. “A second dose conveys immunity to nearly everyone who did not respond to the first dose. Simply put, these vaccines are safe and effective, and serious side effects are rare,” she adds.
“When more people are vaccinated, there are fewer opportunities for the disease to spread. Let’s not return to these grim statistics.”
Tom Robinson
Related Content
Rethinking oncology trial endpoints with generalised pairwise comparisons
For decades, oncology trials have been anchored to a familiar set of endpoints. Overall survival …
Alto Neuroscience’s schizophrenia treatment granted FDA Fast Track designation
Alto Neuroscience has announced that its investigational treatment for cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia (CIAS) …
FDA approves Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccines targeting new variant
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccines, Spikevax and …
