The measles cases are at the top of last year's total, divided among the non-vaccinated

According to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at the federal level, as of October 6, the most recent data available, 142 cases of measles had been reported. The number of sick people, mostly unvaccinated, exceeded 120 in 2017 in mid-August.

Until Friday, Rockland County had 46 confirmed cases and nine suspected cases, according to County Health Commissioner, Dr. Patricia Ruppert. A month ago, officials from the Rockland County Health Department were worried about an outbreak and were proposing emergency measles immunization clinics because an Israeli traveler was there. delivered to an ultra-Orthodox Chassidic synagogue and a succah, a temporary structure built for the Jewish Sukkot Jewish Boy School in New Square, New York.

"There is one element (…) that is not in favor of vaccines," said Dr. Howard Zucker, New York State Health Commissioner. "We must dispel all the worries that they have."

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None of the people infected in Rockland County have been fully immunized, Ruppert said. The state has banned unvaccinated students from attending classes in three communities if their school has a vaccination rate of 70% or less.

Two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, usually given at 12 to 15 months of age with a booster between 4 and 6 years of age, are 97% effective in measles prevention. One dose is 93% effective, according to the CDC.

The measles virus is spread through the misty droplets that occur when an infected person coughs, sneezes and even breathes. The virus can live for up to two hours in the air and on the surfaces of a room where an infected person has been infected.

An infected person can transmit the disease four to four days after the onset of a reddish rash and without itching. The symptoms of measles may not appear until a week or three weeks after exposure.

While the overall vaccination compliance rate in Rockland County is 94%, vaccination rates in Orthodox Jewish schools vary considerably from 40 to 100%.

The World Health Organization considers that herd immunity is achieved when a community vaccines 95% of its members. This helps protect people who can not be vaccinated because they are too young, have immune system problems or are too sick to get vaccinated.

The outbreak in Rockland County, about 25 miles north of New York, is one of 11 outbreaks recorded in 25 states so far this year. The States involved are: Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon , Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

South Carolina is not on the most recent CDC list; However, three cases were confirmed last week in Spartanburg County, according to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. Three or more related cases constitute a home.

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The measles outbreak and the cases of Rockland County in New York – and in Bergen and Lakewood counties, in New Jersey – have been linked to Israel.

An unvaccinated 18-month-old girl died Thursday in Jerusalem of complications from measles, her first death in 15 years, according to the Jerusalem Post. Nearly 1,300 cases in the country of 8.5 million inhabitants have been reported so far this year; In contrast, the United States has about 329 million inhabitants.

The needles used in a free measles immunization clinic on November 2, 2018 in Monsey, New Jersey, are placed in medical waste containers. (Photo: Rochel Leah Goldblatt, The (Westchester / Rockland Journal, N.Y.))

Meanwhile, an epidemic in Europe has killed more than three dozen people.

General skepticism about vaccinations, including MMR vaccines, persists in some people, no matter where they live.

This questioning of vaccines takes place, however, in different ways. Some eliminate all vaccines, believing that they are more risky than the diseases for which they are designed.

Other parents remained concerned about what they view as a crushing and aggressive vaccination schedule.

They may want to slow down the amount of vaccine given or ignore some inoculations. In the void, they may choose not to be vaccinated because they do not think their ideas will be welcome.

Ruppert said that she was talking with families who are "in between," who are committed to delaying a vaccination schedule. She found them open to education and explanations if their concerns are respected.

The success of vaccinating children in previous generations is part of the current problem, said Zucker, pediatrician specializing in critical care. People do not know much about the diseases that killed or maimed children just 25 years ago; the chickenpox vaccine was introduced in the United States in 1995.

"I saw all these diseases, from diphtheria to measles," he said. "I've seen measles encephalitis, whooping cough, I do not think any parent wants to experience it with a child."

"I acknowledge the concerns of this," Zucker said of the parents' concerns. "But I recognize the need for vaccinations."

Because vaccines prevent diseases, they do not see what could happen, he said.

The complications of measles include pneumonia, brain damage, deafness and death. The disease can be dangerous, especially for babies, young children and pregnant women who are not infected with the virus.

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A clinic Friday in Monsey, New York, drew 99 people. One of the children was refused because he had measles symptoms, said Ruppert.

Each person is sorted at the door, she explained, so that any infected person does not end up transmitting the virus to the clinic.

"If they look sick, they will not get into the building," she said, explaining that each person was quickly subjected to an analysis at the door so that anyone infected did not transmit the virus to the house. clinical. She was pleased that the parents of the sick child decided to vaccinate their siblings.