Rubella is a mild viral illness that lasts for about three days. However, when the disease occurs in pregnant women, it can pose a serious threat to the developing fetus.
Rubella is also known as German
measles or three-day measles. However, it has nothing to do with Germany; it comes from the Latin word "germanus," meaning "similar," since rubella and measles share similar symptoms.
The
cause of rubella is an infection with a specific virus. This is an RNA (ribonucleic acid) virus from the family
Togaviridae and the genus
Rubivirus.
How Is Rubella Transmitted?
Rubella virus resides in the mucus in the nose and throat of the infected person. When that person sneezes or coughs, droplets spray into the air. The infected mucus can land in other people's noses or throats when they breathe or put their fingers in their mouth or nose after touching an infected surface.
Contagious Period for the Disease
When a person becomes infected with virus, it begins to multiply within the cells that line the back of the throat and the nose. The virus can also spread through the bloodstream or lymph system to other parts of the body. After 14 to 21 days,
rubella symptoms can appear. This period between transmission and the start of symptoms is known as the "incubation period."
A person with rubella is contagious anytime from about seven days prior to the onset of the rash to seven days after the rash appears. A person can spread the virus if he or she becomes infected, even if symptoms never develop.
About 50 percent of people infected with rubella develop related symptoms. When symptoms do occur, they can include:
In order to make a diagnosis, the healthcare provider will ask a number of questions about a person's medical history and perform a physical exam to look for signs or symptoms of the disease.
Diagnosing rubella can often be done just based on a person's symptoms and findings on the physical exam.
Several other medical conditions can have signs or symptoms that are similar to those of rubella. The healthcare provider will consider these conditions and rule them out as part of confirming the diagnosis. Some of these conditions include:
There is currently no treatment that can kill the virus (antibiotics are not effective against viruses). Therefore,
rubella treatment focuses on providing relief of symptoms as the body fights the virus. This is called supportive care and can include rest, fluids, and medications (such as
acetaminophen or
ibuprofen) to control fever or pain.
In adults and children, rubella is usually a mild disease with infrequent complications. For pregnant women, the disease can cause serious birth defects (known as
congenital rubella syndrome), including:
- Deafness
- Cataracts
- Heart defects
- Mental retardation
- Liver and spleen damage.
There is at least a 20 percent chance of damage to the fetus if a woman is infected with rubella early in her pregnancy.
Since 1969, a vaccine has been available for the
prevention of rubella. The vaccine is contained within the MMR or MR vaccine, or it is given as an individual vaccine.
The last major epidemic of rubella in the United States occurred in 1964 and 1965, when millions of cases led to 20,000 infants born with congenital rubella syndrome. This epidemic cost the country an estimated $1.5 billion. The vaccine was first licensed in the United States in 1969.
Following this, the incidence of rubella declined rapidly. Each year from 1992 through 2000, fewer than 500 cases were reported; each year since 2001, fewer than 100 cases have been reported -- a 99 percent decline compared to the pre-vaccine era.
