Rubella:
It is an acute viral infection, known for its red rash, of which symptoms usually last for three days. Rubella is less common than measles, and although it is generally a mild infection with symptoms in children, it has serious complications when it affects pregnant women.
Causes:
It occurs due to transmission of the German measles virus into the body.
Methods of transmission of the disease:
- It is transmitted to others through droplets coughed or sneezed by a person infected with the virus.
- It is transmitted from a pregnant woman to her child through the placenta.
- A person with rubella may spread the disease to others for up to a week before the rash appears, and remain contagious for up to 7 days after the rash appears.
The incubation period:
The average incubation period for the rubella virus is 17 days, and its duration ranges from 12 to 23 days. People with rubella are most contagious when the rash appears, but they can be contagious from 7 days before the rash appears to 7 days before.
Symptoms:
In children, rubella is usually mild, with few noticeable symptoms. For children with symptoms, a red rash is usually the first sign. The rash generally appears on the face first and then spreads to the rest of the body and lasts for about three days. Other symptoms that may occur one to five days before the rash appears include:
- High temperature.
- Headache.
- Cough.
- Redness or swelling of the eye.
- Swollen and enlarged lymph nodes.
- Runny nose.
- Pharyngitis.
- General discomfort.
When to see a doctor:
- You should go to the doctor when you feel symptoms.
- A skin rash occurs in pregnant women or when in contact with an infected person.
Complications:
- Inflammation of the finger, wrist and knee joints in women (rare in men and children).
- Encephalitis (very rare).
The most dangerous complication is the one that affects pregnant women, as it either causes miscarriage or the death of the child immediately after birth, or the virus may be transmitted to the fetus and it becomes infected with what is called “congenital rubella syndrome,” which causes one or all of these problems:
- Eye lens darkening.
- Deafness.
- Congenital defects of the heart or other organs.
- Intellectual disability.
Treatment:
There is no specific medicine to treat rubella or make the disease go away faster. In many cases, the symptoms are mild, so it is recommended to rest and take medications for fever.
Prevention:
The best way to prevent rubella is to receive the triple viral vaccine.
- Giving the vaccine to a woman before pregnancy or after childbirth if it is found that there are no antibodies.
- Keep infected people away from healthy people until they recover, to prevent transmission of infection.
The vaccine:
In general, a person is considered safe if he has been infected with the disease before or has received the vaccine previously. The vaccine is usually given as a community immunization for measles, mumps, and rubella (measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine), and two doses of it are recommended before the child enters school:
The first dose is given at the age of 12 months and the second at the age of 15 months.
Contraindications for taking the triple viral vaccine:
- Pregnant women or women who plan to become pregnant within the next four weeks.
- People who suffer from a severe allergic reaction to a previous dose of the vaccination or to one of the components of the vaccine.
- People with a severely weakened immune system.
Instructions for those infected during infection:
Rubella symptoms usually improve within about a week, but the following guidelines can help relieve
symptoms:
- Get plenty of rest.
- Drink plenty of fluids, especially water.
- Take painkillers to relieve fever (such as paracetamol).
- Absence from nursery or school for 5 days after the rash appears.
- Avoid close contact with pregnant women.