Pennsylvania raises alarm on congenital measles - CIDRAP
Pennsylvania health officials have issued an alert regarding congenital measles following an outbreak that has affected dozens of pregnant women. The condition, which can be fatal to infants, presents significant clinical challenges due to a lack of standardized data and historical precedent.
Why it matters
The resurgence of measles and its potential for congenital transmission represents a serious public health concern that requires updated medical guidance.
Share Copied to clipboard A new health alert from the Pennsylvania Department of Health is warning doctors about congenital measles, a disease that was once extremely rare in the United States. But now that dozens of pregnant Pennsylvania women have contracted measles in the state’s ongoing outbreak, the potentially fatal infection passed from mother to baby in utero is poised to pose clinical challenges for physicians facing a disease they’ve never seen in practice.
So far, Pennsylvania has said 66 pregnant women have contracted measles while pregnant this year, and at least six babies in the state have been born with measles. Of the six deaths reported in the state, at least two have been in infants, but it’s not known if they had congenital infections.
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