RUBELLA

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RUBELLA

• Rubella is a mild but very contagious viral
  illness. Other names for rubella are German
  measles and three-day measles.
• Rubella has a worldwide distribution with
  seasonal peaks during spring and summer.
• People get rubella by breathing in droplets that
  get into the air when an infected person coughs,
  sneezes, or talks. Rubella can also spread by
  direct contact with fluids from the nose or
  throat of an infected person.

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RUBELLA cont.

• Rubella can can also pass through a pregnant
  woman's bloodstream to infect her unborn child.
  As this is a generally mild disease in children,
  the primary medical danger of rubella is the
  infection of pregnant women, which may cause
  congenital rubella syndrome in developing babies.
  
• In most cases, symptoms appear within 16 to 18
  days. Diagnosis is by blood test or virus
  culture. Anyone can get rubella, but
  unvaccinated, school-aged children are most at
  risk.

• Most cases of rubella are mild. About half of
  people infected with rubella virus get a rash
  that looks like small, fine pink spots. The rash
  first appears on the face and progresses from
  head to foot, lasting about 3 days. Children
  usually develop few or no other symptoms. Adults
  can have mild fever, headache, reddened eyes,
  swollen glands behind the ears, tiredness, and
  joint pain.
• An infected person can spread the disease for as
  many as 5 days before the rash appears to 7 days
  after.
• Rubella virus multiplies in cells of the
  respiratory system then virus flows through
  bloodstream to target other organs. Rubella
  primarily affects the skin and lymph nodes.

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RUBELLA cont.

• CAUSATIVE AGENT AND CLASSIFICATION
• The causative agent of rubella, is the rubella
  virus, which belongs to the family of
  Togaviridae.
• The Togaviridae are a family of viruses,
  including the following genera Genus Rubivirus,
  type species Rubella virus.
• Rubella virus is a single-stranded RNA virus and
  the only member of the genus Rubivirus within the
  Togavirus family.

• HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE AND INTERESTING FACTS
• The name, Rubella, is derived from the Latin,
  meaning little red. Rubella is also known as
  German measles because the disease was first
  described by German physicians in the
  mid-eighteenth century.
• In 1969 a live attenuated virus vaccine was
  licensed. In the early 1970s, a triple vaccine
  containing attenuated measles, mumps and rubella
  (MMR) viruses was introduced.
• Congenital rubella syndrome is associated with
  malformations of multiple organ systems including
  the cardiac, ocular, and skeletal systems.
  Infants with congenital rubella syndrome who
  survive into adulthood may be plagued by
  autoimmune disorders.