Rubella Health Video

Video Transcript

Dr. SUSAN MCGLADERRY: Hello, my name is Dr. Susan McGladdery. I'm the medical director from First Med Centers in Budapest, Hungary. I'm going to give you a little bit of information about rubella. Rubella or German measles is a viral infection that causes a mild measles-like illness, so called 3 day measles but there is one important exception when pregnant women get rubella. In this case, the consequences for their unborn child maybe very severe. Up to 85% of infants born to mothers who had Rubella during the first 11 weeks of pregnancy developed something called, the congenital rubella syndrome. This can cause one or more problems including things like growth retardation, cataracts, deafness, congenital heart defects, and even defects in other organs. The highest risk to the fetus is during the first trimester, but exposure later in pregnancy can also be dangerous. There is a way to prevent rubella and that is the measles-mumps rubella vaccine. It is very effective, so that now rubella is very rare in most developed countries. However, cases of rubella do still occur mostly in unvaccinated adults. Fortunately, cases with babies born with the congenital rubella syndrome are now very rare. Thanks to the vaccination. So, what can you do to prevent congenital rubella syndrome? Well, if you're planning to become pregnant, you should really check your vaccination record in advance to make sure that you've received all of your MMR inoculations. It's a good idea to see your doctor for a preconception visit. A simple blood test can confirm that you're already immune to rubella. It's best for women to be protected against rubella before pregnancy. So if you know you're not immune, get the vaccination before you become pregnant. If you are pregnant, most doctors will make a routine screening for immunity to rubella as part of the prenatal care program. The other thing that you can do, of course, is to ensure that your child receives the recommended two doses of the MMR vaccine on time.