Fwd: U.S. reports biggest measles outbreak since 2001

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**U.S. reports biggest measles outbreak since 2001**

Thu May 1, 2008 3:55pm EDT

By Will Dunham

http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSN01435942

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The biggest U.S. outbreak of measles since

2001 is unfolding in 10 states, with at least 72 people ranging from

infants to the elderly becoming ill -- most of them unvaccinated,

U.S. health officials said Thursday.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said said none

of those who caught the highly contagious viral illness has died, but

at least 14 people have been hospitalized, most with pneumonia

triggered by measles.

There were 116 cases in 2001, and the last major U.S. outbreak

occurred from 1989 to 1991, when 55,000 people got measles and 123

died.

Anne Schuchat, who heads the CDC's National Center for Immunization

and Respiratory Diseases, said she expects " many more cases this year

than we had in 2001 based on what's going on today. "

Public health officials have been stressing the importance of

immunizing children in the face of increasingly vocal groups who

object to vaccines for religious reasons or because they think the

shots may cause autism or other problems.

CDC officials said overwhelming scientific evidence points to the

safety of the combined measles-mumps-rubella, or MMR, shot and other

childhood vaccines.

" We are concerned ... about the population of people who are

choosing not to be vaccinated, and whether we may be on the verge of

facing larger-scale outbreaks in the United States, " said Jane Seward

of the CDC's division of viral diseases.

The CDC said most of the measles cases can be traced to 10 people

who picked up the disease overseas and then traveled back to the

United States, where others became infected. The ages of those

sickened ranged from 5 months to 71 years.

GLOBAL PROBLEM

" These cases and outbreaks resulted primarily from failure to

vaccinate, many because of personal or religious belief exemption, "

the agency said in a statement.

The CDC said 64 cases were reported from Jan. 1 through April 25 in

Arizona, California, Hawaii, Illinois, Michigan, New York,

Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Eight more confirmed cases -- all involving unvaccinated children in

one family who had attended a church gathering in the Seattle area --

have been reported since then in Washington state, the state

department of health said Thursday.

Those spreading measles were infected in Switzerland and Israel,

both of which have larger outbreaks, as well as in India, Belgium,

Italy and likely China and Japan, the CDC said.

" Transmission has occurred in community and health care settings,

including homes, child care centers, schools, hospitals, emergency

rooms and physicians' offices, " it said.

The disease causes fever, cough, redness and irritation of the eyes

and a rash. Serious complications include encephalitis and pneumonia

that can be fatal. Measles remains a leading cause of death among

children in poor countries, killing about 250,000 people a year

globally.

Before a vaccine was introduced in 1963, more than half a million

people got measles in the United States and 500 died annually. Thanks

to the vaccination program, measles is no longer endemic in the United

States, and ongoing transmission of the virus was declared eliminated

in 2000.

The annual number of cases since then generally has been in the

dozens and caused by someone infected in another country. (Editing by

Maggie Fox and Xavier d)

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