The National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) has reported an increase in rubella cases across the country.
The NICD says 8543 cases have occurred in children under 15 years of age, with the bulk occurring in the 5-9-year age group. Additionally, the number of cases in 2024 is exceeding the number of rubella cases identified through fever-rash surveillance cases since 2015.
NICD SAYS RUBELLA CASES IN 2024 ARE THE HIGHEST SINCE 2015
The NICD said it has been inundated with fever-rash samples for testing, and it is evident that there is a marked increase in rubella cases across the country.
According to the institution, presently, an estimated 6 000 samples are awaiting testing, including samples from week 40 (commencing 29 September 2024) onward. Whilst a seasonal increase in cases is expected every year, usually occurring from September to December each year, notably, the number of cases is much larger in 2024 compared with previous years.
WHAT COULD BE THE REASON BEHIND THE HIGH NUMBER OF CASES?
The NICD said the reason for the large number of cases this year, compared with previous years, is because many children entered 2024 without prior exposure to rubella, or without being vaccinated against rubella.
Three factors have led to the large number of children entering 2024 without rubella immunity – as follows:
- Immunity to rubella infection or rubella vaccination is lifelong. If children are not vaccinated against rubella, and never come into contact with rubella virus through natural infection, children will remain susceptible to rubella.
- Vaccination against the infection has not been not part of our routine EPI programme prior to 2024. The Department of Health is presently rolling out the combined measles-rubella-containing vaccine (MRCV), which will be administered to 6 and 12 months old children as soon as each province exhausts their stock of measles-containing vaccine (MCV)
- The non-pharmaceutical interventions that were applied during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic interrupted transmission of rubella, and for the period 2020-2022 there were almost no cases identified from the NDoH/NICD fever-rash surveillance.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS?
The NICD said that regarding clinical aspects of rubella infection in children and adults, rubella is a self-limiting infection that presents with a maculopapular rash, myalgia, enlarged lymph nodes, headache, and conjunctivitis.
“Occasionally, people may develop joint pain (arthralgia), low platelets, and mild encephalitis. The complications are usually self-limited. Very rarely, cases of Guillian-Barre syndrome have been reported after rubella infection. Rubella is of concern because of the risk of rubella infection in women of childbearing age during the first trimester of pregnancy.
“However, rubella infection carries a risk of congenital rubella syndrome. Women who are pregnant in their first trimester and acquire rubella may pass the infection onto their fetus, who may develop congenital rubella syndrome (CRS),” the NICD said.
HAVE YOU TESTED YOUR CHILDREN FOR RUBELLA?
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