To: Broken_Clock who wrote (1562659 ) 10/3/2025 7:06:18 PM From: pocotrader Read Replies (3) | Respond to oh really, how come kids my age were all getting measles.rubella ) swept through the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the toll was heavy on pregnant women and newborns : “Before the rubella vaccination program started in 1969, rubella was a common and widespread infection in the United States. During the last major rubella epidemic in the United States from 1964 to 1965, an estimated 12.5 million people got rubella, 11,000 pregnant women lost their babies, 2,100 newborns died, and 20,000 babies were born with congenital rubella syndrome (CRS). Once the vaccine became widely used, the number of people infected with rubella in the United States dropped dramatically.” Yes, you read that right. There were thousands of lost pregnancies and thousands of dead newborns... And 20,000 babies with congenital rubella syndrome. The syndrome causes all sorts of complications for newborns, from cataracts in the eyes to heart problems, to intellectual disabilities . While not a death sentence on its own -- especially with today's medical technology -- CRS can lead to a lifetime of disabilities. Just watch Ian's Story: youtube.com So many children were born with CRS in that era that entire units in hospitals were dedicated to caring for children with CRS. Healthcare providers were trained on how to care for them as well. youtube.com Because of the rubella vaccine (which is now part of the MMR -- measles, mumps and rubella -- vaccine) the number of cases of CRS plummeted. According to CDC, there are only a handful of cases of CRS every year, and “(s)ince 2012, all rubella cases had evidence that they were infected when they were living or traveling outside the United States.” Yes, there are still pockets of high incidence of rubella in the world. According to the World Health Organization, the Eastern Mediterranean and African regions are far below the vaccine coverage needed to prevent outbreaks of rubella, while Southeast Asia has almost caught up to Europe and the Americas, but is not quite at the level needed for herd immunity yet:
