Word: rubella
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...Although rubella, or German measles, often passes unnoticed in both children and adults, it is deadly to the unborn. In the winter epidemic of 1964-65, infected mothers miscarried or were delivered of 30,000 stillborn infants; another 20,000 babies had severe defects. The malady runs in cycles, and the coming winter is expected to be another bad one-unless countermeasures are taken...
Though doctors were delighted when rubella (German measles) vaccines were licensed 15 months ago, many asked a troubling question: Could a recently vaccinated child spread the highly contagious rubella virus to a pregnant woman? If so, the risk of damage or even death to her unborn child might be as great as that from exposure to the actual disease...
...avoid confusion with naturally occurring rubella infections, Veronelli conducted his study in early winter, when there would be little or no natural rubella in the community. Before vaccinating the children, he tested their mothers' blood, found 62 women susceptible to rubella. To their children he gave only inert, placebo injections, rather than risk indirectly infecting a vulnerable woman who might be pregnant without yet knowing...
Tests on susceptible siblings of the 1,534 children who received rubella vaccines yielded no traces of response to the virus. In most cases there was little or none of the telltale rise in blood-antibody that signals the system's protective reaction to the virus. As a result, Veronelli believes that the vaccine will not spread infection to others...
...reassuring. Because antibody levels induced by vaccination are lower than those produced by the natural disease, Veronelli is doubtful about long-term protection from the vaccines. Only periodic blood testing of the young recipients will tell. In the meantime, Veronelli urges continued research efforts to develop a killed-virus rubella vaccine, which would provide safe booster protection even in early pregnancy...