NEW ORLEANS — A complication of measles that kills children years after they have been infected is more common than previously thought, according to disturbing data released Friday.
The research, presented at IDWeek, the annual meeting of four professional infectious disease organizations, underscores the critical importance of vaccination for everyone who is eligible. Such widespread vaccination, which results in herd immunity, protects children who can't be immunized. Particularly vulnerable are babies, who typically get the vaccine known as MMR, for measles, mumps and rubella at 12 months of age.
