Many adults with measles have to be hospitalized

With a history of good health, 5 days ago, a 38-year-old man in Thanh Hoa had a continuous fever, sore throat, and upper respiratory tract infection. After the fever, he developed a rash on his face that spread to his entire body, accompanied by itching and discomfort. In the following days, he had a stomachache and had diarrhea 4-5 times a day. At the provincial hospital, he was diagnosed with rash fever, treatment did not improve, and he coughed a lot, so he was transferred to Bach Mai Hospital.

At the Tropical Disease Center, after examination, doctors discovered that this person had a rash syndrome suspected of measles, accompanied by inflammation of the upper respiratory tract. Examination of the throat revealed Koplik spots, which are white spots on the mucosa of the right cheek, in addition to signs of red eyes and swollen eyelids. The patient was tested and confirmed to be infected with the measles virus. After 5 days of intensive treatment here, the patient recovered and was discharged without complications.

A 37-year-old woman from Nam Dinh had a fever at home for 3 days, accompanied by a red rash that started on her face and neck and spread to her entire body, along with a sore throat, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and difficulty breathing. At the provincial hospital, she was diagnosed with rash fever/leukopenia, increased liver enzymes, and pneumonia. After antibiotic treatment, there was no improvement, so she was transferred to Bach Mai Hospital. Here, after testing, the patient was diagnosed with measles with pneumonia complications. Currently, after 3 days of treatment, the patient is out of danger.

After a high fever, people with measles begin to develop a rash. (Illustration photo)

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Do Duy Cuong, Director of the Center for Tropical Diseases, Bach Mai Hospital, measles is an acute and dangerous infectious disease transmitted through the respiratory tract caused by a virus of the Paramyxoviridae family.

The weather in the North is changing seasons, so the center receives many adult patients with measles. The measles virus is easily transmitted through the air or droplets, susceptible subjects are children who have not been vaccinated, or adults when the amount of antibodies in the blood decreases.

Measles in adults and children can cause dangerous complications such as encephalitis, pneumonia, conjunctivitis, keratitis, secondary infections causing otitis media, enteritis and other infections that greatly affect health and even endanger life.

Many adults subjectively believe that measles only occurs in children, so they do not go to the doctor and get treatment. For pregnant women, measles has a negative impact on the mother's health and affects the fetus, especially in the first 3 months of pregnancy.

In August 2024, Ho Chi Minh City announced a measles epidemic and in previous years, many localities had many measles cases in the community. The Ministry of Health has issued guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of measles. Medical staff need to pay attention to the characteristics of measles to test for diagnosis and timely isolation and treatment, avoid missing and late detection, thereby increasing the risk of spreading in the community.

Measles, like other infectious diseases such as diphtheria, whooping cough, and tetanus, can be safely prevented by vaccination. The current measles vaccine for adults is the 3-in-1 MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccine, which helps us prevent the disease and its complications. In addition, it is necessary to maintain environmental and personal hygiene, improve health to increase resistance, and wear a mask when in contact with sick people.

Nhu Loan

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/nhieu-nguoi-lon-mac-soi-phai-nhap-vien-ar912842.html