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Eliminating Rubella Reduces Infant Disabilities

February 13, 2022 • 6:42 am CST
(Precision Vaccinations News)

The U.S. CDC published a new Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report on February 11, 2022, highlighting the progress toward controlling and eliminating Rubella and Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS) globally.

The CDC says the rubella virus (German measles) is a leading cause of vaccine-preventable congenital disabilities.

Moreover, rubella infections during pregnancy, especially during the first trimester, can result in miscarriage, fetal death, stillbirth, or an infant born with a constellation of disabilities known as CRS.

The Global Vaccine Action Plan 2011–2020 included a target to achieve elimination of rubella in at least five of the six World Health Organization (WHO) regions by 2020.

This updated report summarizes global progress toward control and elimination of rubella and CRS from 2012, when accelerated rubella control activities were initiated, through 2020.

Among 194 WHO Member States, the number with a rubella-containing vaccine (RCV) in their immunization schedules has increased from 132 (68%) in 2012 to 173 (89%) in 2020.

The benefits of these changes were easily measured.

This increase means about 70% of the world’s infants were vaccinated against rubella in 2020. Furthermore, reported rubella cases declined by 48% in 2019.

Likewise, countries that have introduced RCV can achieve and maintain rubella elimination with high vaccination coverage.

Four of six WHO regions have established rubella elimination goals.

The two WHO regions that have not yet established an elimination goal, the African and Eastern Mediterranean, have committed to rubella elimination.

In the U.S., about 90% of eligible children were rubella-vaccinated by 2019.

The CDC says rubella can be prevented with an MMR vaccine, and certain children may also get an MMRV vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (chickenpox). 

Additional rubella vaccine news is published at Precision Vaccinations/measles.

Note: The findings in this report are subject to at least two limitations. The corresponding author is Laura A. Zimmerman @ [email protected].

Medical Review by

Our Trust Standards: Medical Advisory Committee

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