‘New forms of measles’ emerge in Pennsylvania as cases surge

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Add The New York Post on Google Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak has taken a disturbing turn.

The highly contagious disease has ripped through communities across the Keystone State in recent months, sickening hundreds, sending scores to the hospital and claiming four lives .

Now, as the virus continues to spread, doctors are seeing it turn up in patients they rarely encountered before — and learning how to treat them in real time.

Enter: Congenital measles, a potentially life-threatening condition that occurs when a mother who is infected around the time of delivery passes the virus onto her baby in the womb or during birth.

For much of history, cases like these were rare. Before vaccines, most people were infected with measles during childhood, so women typically had lasting natural immunity by the time they had children of their own.