Posted on 05/26/2006 6:11:17 PM PDT by neverdem
BOSTON (Reuters) - Boston health officials worked on Thursday to contain the city's first outbreak of measles in seven years after four people in a downtown office tower were diagnosed with the highly infectious disease.
The Boston Public Health Commission opened a second emergency health clinic at the 60-story John Hancock Tower after it became known that hundreds of workers may be at risk of developing measles.
Measles was long considered a normal childhood disease, but the virus can cause severe complications in otherwise healthy children and adults, including sometimes fatal encephalitis, pneumonia and diarrhea.
The four who were diagnosed with the disease all worked at Investors Bank & Trust, a financial services firm. Three of the workers caught the disease from a contract worker who recently traveled from India.
An initial emergency clinic was set up on May 11 after the first case emerged.
Only 37 measles cases were reported in the United States in 2004, an all-time low, according to the most recent data.
But a few cases are still imported from countries with lower vaccination rates and the disease occurs domestically as well, health officials say.
John Auerbach, Boston Public Health Commission's executive director, said hundreds of workers at Investors Bank & Trust had received vaccinations to prevent an outbreak.
While measles is very rare, Auerbach said, "there are still pockets of the population that aren't immunized."
A month ago U.S. Public health officials expressed concern about an outbreak of mumps in the Midwest and said some people may have been infected on airline flights.
John Riley, head of marketing and communications at Investors Bank & Trust -- a firm with 1,500 employees in Boston -- said all four workers had recovered.
Measles is a highly contagious illness that begins with a high fever, runny nose and watery, red eyes, and develops into a rash that spreads over the body. The illness is spread through the air when a sick person coughs, sneezes or even talks, according to a Massachusetts Department of Public Health fact sheet.
Most developed countries routinely vaccinate children against measles but the virus still killed 500,000 people, mostly children, around the world in 2003, according to the World Health Organization.
Ahh! The rewards of open borders....
These pseudo-scientists endanger all of us. It is our duty to shout them down.
Heart doc halts surgery to donate blood
Daily Drinking Cuts Heart Disease Risk for Men "The researchers stressed that any potential benefit from daily drinking would be overwhelmed by the ill effects of heavy drinking -- more than a drink or two per day." Despite the discrepancy in the total number of males and females in the study, the following link appears to be the study in question.
Prospective study of alcohol drinking patterns and coronary heart disease in women and men Any corrections are always appreciated.
FReepmail me if you want on or off my health and science ping list.
Stop trying to hijack this thread.
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There are measles outbreaks just about yearly on college campuses. Vaccinations DO NOT PROVIDE IMMUNITY. The other side can shout just as loud as you can. Not everyone buys into the great vaccination experiment.
Where, in my post, did I mention illegal immigrants. I was referring to open borders. As in anyone can come here and spread a disease (most open borders lobbyists apparent have caught one and want the rest of us to, as well) because our govt. is too weak and stupid to see the damage open borders will cause.
Man, the things I wish I could say to the open borders creeps on this forum.
I am personally waiting for the Leprosy outbreak in Boston -then everyone else will look like Teddy Kennedy and he won't be so lonesome....
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=43275
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