Vaccine News & Notes — June 2017

Measles in the U.S.

More than 65 measles cases were attributed to the Minnesota outbreak early June. The overwhelming majority of these cases were in unvaccinated Somali-Minnesotan children. The parents of these children have been targeted with misinformation and false claims about a link between vaccination and autism.

The Somali community outbreak is part of a countrywide surge in measles cases. The cases in the U.S. in 2017 are about to surpass the number of cases diagnosed during all of 2016. Those vaccinated against measles may wonder why they should be concerned. This article on the Shot of Prevention blog explains the problems a measles outbreak could pose for vaccinated families.

Influenza vaccine effective in preventing influenza-related deaths

Beginning in 2010, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended all children older than 6 months of age receive an annual influenza vaccine. A recently published study looked at the effectiveness of this recommendation in curtailing influenza deaths in children. This study, published by researchers at the CDC, showed that between July 2010 and June 2014, 358 children (6 months to 17 years old) died from infections with influenza. The authors were able to confirm the vaccination status for 291 of these children. Specifically, about three of every four of the children who died were not vaccinated. Children who were vaccinated were 65 percent less likely to die from flu than those who were unvaccinated. In the case of children who had high-risk conditions, such as chronic lung or heart disease, vaccinated children were about 50 percent less likely to die compared with those who were not vaccinated.