Officials urge for vaccination during a measles outbreak in the north-west of the country

VANCOUVER, Washington (AP) – Public health officials are fighting to contain a measles outbreak in the northwestern United States vaccination rate at the epicenter of the crisis.

The outbreak near Portland has sickened 35 people in Oregon and Washington since January 1, and 11 more are suspected. Most patients are children under 10 years old and one child has been hospitalized.

Health officials say the outbreak is an eloquent example of why it is essential to vaccinate against measles, which was eradicated in the United States after the introduction of the vaccine in 1963. These In recent years, however, the viral disease has resurfaced from New York to California and sickened hundreds.

Clark County, Washington State, has a vaccination rate of 78%, well below the level needed to protect people whose immune system is compromised or who can not get vaccinated because of problems medical or because they are too young.

Disinformation is circulating on social media, said Dr. Alan Melnick, director of public health for Clark County.

"What keeps me awake at night, it's finally that a child dies of this totally avoidable situation," he said. "The measles vaccine causes autism, even though it has not yet been debunked." It's nonsense. "

Before mbad immunization, 400 to 500 people in the United States died of measles each year, 50,000 people were hospitalized and 4,000 people developed brain swelling that could lead to deafness, Melnick said. One to three out of 1000 cases are fatal, he said.

People may have been exposed to the disease in about four dozen localities, including the Portland International Airport and a Portland Trail Blazers match, officials said.

They announced Monday that others may have been infected at Oregon's famous Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland and at a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Vancouver's bedroom community. Washington State.

Thirty-one confirmed patients had not been vaccinated against measles. The immunization status of four other infected persons is unknown.

The vaccine has been part of routine childhood vaccines for decades, and measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000. But measles is still a serious problem in other parts of the world, and infected travelers abroad can bring back the virus and transmit it, provoking periodic epidemics.

Last year, there were 17 outbreaks and about 350 measles cases in the United States.

Officials still do not know where the outbreak of the Northwest began. The first known patient sought medical attention on December 31, but it is not known if other people may have become ill before and did not seek treatment.

Children receive the first vaccine between 12 and 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. A vaccine confers 93% immunity against measles and two injections provide 97% protection.

But the vaccine is less effective in children under one year of age and is not usually given to infants.

Jocelyn Smith is terrified. Her youngest son, 11 months old, will catch measles. They live in Camas, Washington, where at least one infected person has spent time being contagious.

Smith has an appointment to vaccinate his son as soon as he is eligible – the day after his first birthday.

"I have not taken the baby in public for 10 days, I am so scared," she said. "Everyone stays inside."

The virus, spread by coughing or sneezing, can stay in the air for up to two hours in an isolated area. Ninety percent of those exposed to measles who have not been immunized will be vaccinated, health officials said.

Those who may have been exposed should monitor the onset of the first symptoms of high fever, discomfort and redness of the eyes, followed by a rash that starts on the head and moves along the body.