CDC: Adults Need Measles Immunizations, Too

By Sherri Lonon

As a measles outbreak pops up in various states, including Maryland, there is a renewed emphasis on the need for childhood immunizations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The agency has released its list of immunizations recommended for people ages 19 and older in 2015. That list includes standard recommendations, such as annual flu shots and routine tetanus, but also shingles, pneumonia and HPV. In addition, the agency recommends people born in 1957 or later check to make sure they’ve been immunized against measles, mumps and rubella.

While those are the standard immunizations recommended by the CDC for adults, individuals planning to travel outside of the country may need other shots, the agency notes. Adults, the CDC website says, should talk to their health-care providers to find out what immunizations may be required for them.

A complete list of recommended immunizations is available on the CDC website.

Meanwhile, a re-emergence of the measles virus is raising alarm bells across the country.

In Baltimore, a 12-month-old girl was being treated in emergency rooms at MedStar Good Samaritan Hospital and Johns Hopkins hospitals in January as health officials tried to determine whether she had measles, according to the Baltimore Sun.

While the child did not end up having measles, Dr. Leana Wen, Baltimore’s new health commissioner, criticized parents who do not vaccinate their children, reminding the public of the dangers of the infectious disease, according to the news outlet.

“It’s a travesty that we’d eliminate measles and now it’s back because some people aren’t vaccinating their children,” Wen told the Sun. “Measles doesn’t just cause death, it can cause permanent harm,” including deafness and brain damage.

During January, there were 102 reported cases of measles in 14 states, according to the CDC. Many of those cases have been linked to a multi-state outbreak that originated in California.

Once declared eradicated, measles has been on the rebound in recent years, the CDC states.

“The United States experienced a record number of measles cases during 2014, with 644 cases from 27 states reported to CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD),” the agency’s website states. “This is the greatest number of cases since measles elimination was documented in the U.S. in 2000.”

Image via Shutterstock

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