• Bulos.All lies about the flu vaccine
  • Campaign: Anti-vaccine traps: they are neither toxic nor cause autism
  • Office. Send your questions to Boticaria García

They were not dead, they were partying. I mean the viruses of the famous viral triple: measles, mumps and rubella. We had forgotten them, some people considered them extinct. But no. They have returned like the dark swallows. And while here we remain cowed with COVID-19, they, without making noise, without monopolizing many headlines, are gaining ground. Without dramas or alarmisms, it is convenient to be aware that the enemy is close and, above all, that the fence must be narrowed.

MEASLES

Last week Doctors Without Borders drew attention to a massive measles outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) which has been an epidemic since June 2019 and has already claimed 6,000 lives. According to Inés Lezama, chief of nutrition for UNICEF in the DRC, high malnutrition can be one of the causes that viruses such as measles, polio or Ebola become stronger there.

"Well," some will think. "The Congo is too far away ..." Error! The reality, and selfishness apart, is that in a global world nothing is far away and here we also have a problem. A decade ago, measles in Spain was almost eradicated, but in recent years we have had sporadic outbreaks. It is true that they are not endemic cases and that they have always been related to some imported case, but according to the ISCIII bulletin, in 2019 287 cases were confirmed in Spain .

A decade ago, measles in Spain was almost eradicated, but in recent years we have had sporadic outbreaks

Why is this happening right now? There is an explanation: in Spain the systematic vaccination of the triple viral was introduced in 1981. It is possible that, having a greater number of viruses circulating worldwide, people born before are unprotected. For this reason, the Ministry of Health has recommended that those born between 1970 and 1980 be vaccinated from measles . In summary: those who are between 40 and 50 years old who do not remember if they have passed measles or who cannot confirm with their parents if they were given the vaccine, should make an appointment. WHO has said that by 2020 the number of measles cases will be multiplied by three.

MUMPS

Only so far this year, mumps has been news in places like Catalonia (100 infected in Girona), Asturias, Ferrol and Valladolid . Why does it happen just now? There is also an explanation. In Spain there is a rebound in cases because between 1993 and 1999, the strain used to make the vaccine (RUBINI) was less immunogenic than other strains. It was used because it generated less reaction ... but nobody is perfect and let's say it made "less effect." The health authorities took action on the matter from 1999 and recommended that all children receive at least one dose of vaccine with a vaccine strain other than Rubini.

Do young people who get vaccinated with these less immunogenic strains have to get vaccinated again? No, unless otherwise stated and expressed by Health before a specific outbreak, because it would not be cost effective.

Mumps is a mild disease that heals on its own in a week or two

What can happen to me if I take mumps? It usually begins with fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness and loss of appetite. The hallmark of the virus is that in most infected people it causes inflammation of the glands that produce saliva, the parotids, which are between the jaw and the ear. This inflammation causes the cheeks to swell and around the jaw and the inflamed area hurts.

It is a mild disease that heals on its own in a week or two. In boys they can cause pain and swelling in the testicles, and in teenage girls and women, inflammation and pain in ovaries and breasts. Serious complications, such as meningitis, transient deafness, encephalitis ... are very rare. We are not alone: ​​in the United Kingdom they have counted the highest number of cases of the decade. More than 5,000 cases in 2019, four times more than the previous year.

rubella

Rubella is lucky to be the least known of the three. It is transmitted through saliva or by direct contact and in principle it is a benign disease that develops with fever and skin rashes. The "house brand" is that rubella infection during pregnancy can cause miscarriage, fetal death or congenital rubella syndrome. The good news is that, after the introduction of the 1981 systematic vaccination, it became an extremely rare disease. The bad news: just over a year ago 16 workers from a slaughterhouse in Zuera (Zaragoza) suffered an infection following an imported case. The thing does not end in Zuera because, again, we are not alone: ​​in Japan last year there were about 2300 cases of rubella.

CONCLUSION

The best way to prevent the famous triad is through vaccination. And not anyway. For example, in the case of measles, 95% of the population needs to be vaccinated to achieve the desired herd effect. Less fear of vaccines and more respect for the return of viruses that should never have come back. Remember: vaccines are safe, vaccines save lives.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • Science and Health
  • Vaccinations

COVID-19China announces the largest drop in the number of new cases of coronavirus in almost a month

Health Sanidad confirms that the one admitted to Torrevieja does not suffer from coronavirus

COVID-19China changes the method to count the cases of COVID-19 coronavirus and the number of victims soars