On Thursday, health officials announced that a death case related to measles has been reported in which a woman died in the spring. While the woman, who most likely could not of been vaccinated due to her compromised immune system, did not die of measles outright, officials highlighted the death as an example of how important vaccinations are.
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“The woman had several other health conditions and was on medications that contributed to a suppressed immune system”, the department’s statement said. The spokesman goes on to say that they are withholding her age and other characteristics to protect her identity, although they will say that this was not an elderly patient.
“I think what’s heaviest on our minds is the tragedy of it all, a young woman dying from a disease that is preventable”, said Dr. Jeanette Stehr-Green, Clallam County health officer.
There have been 176 cases of measles in the United States so far this year, with 117 of those cases linked to the Disney outbreak, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The last U.S. death from measles was in 2003. Noted the officials, “People with compromised immune systems often can not be vaccinated against measles”. A post-mortem examination confirmed she had an undetected measles infection, the Washington State Department of Health said in a statement.
In 2014, the number of reported cases of measles was the highest since 2000, the CDC reported.
Schuchat said the best protection is immunization. The fence of protection that vaccine-induced immunity throws up around all of us protects not only those who are vaccinated, but those who can’t be: infants too young to get the vaccine and anyone who, like the Washington woman, possesses an immune system undermined by medical treatment or biological hazard. That was one of the chief causes of death from measles in the pre-vaccine era. Even when vaccinated, they may not have a good immune response when exposed to disease; they may be especially vulnerable to disease outbreaks. Within about three weeks of exposure to someone with measles, it’s possible to develop the disease.
It stressed that no one who had contact with any of the known cases remains at risk.
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The news from Washington comes as California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a law making vaccinations mandatory for children in California schools, removing a previous option that allowed parents to seek an exemption on religious and personal belief grounds.
