Nine unvaccinated people hospitalized as Texas measles outbreak doubles
An outbreak of measles in one of Texas’ least vaccinated counties continues to rapidly expand, with officials reporting 24 cases Tuesday, up from just nine confirmed on Friday.
According to an update by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), all 24 cases identified in the two-week-old outbreak are in unvaccinated people. Nine of the patients (37.5 percent) required hospitalization.
Most of the cases are in children. DSHS provided an age breakdown that listed six cases as being in infants and young children between the ages of 0 and 4. This is the age group most vulnerable to measles because they have a heightened risk of complications from the disease and may be too young to be fully vaccinated with the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine. Children are recommended to get two doses of the MMR vaccine, one between 12 and 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years. One dose of MMR vaccine is estimated to be 93 percent effective against measles, while two doses are 97 percent effective.
