It may hard for younger people to accept this, but when I was in medical school, we talked casually of patients having had “the usual childhood diseases,” referring to measles, mumps, chicken pox and rubella (German measles).
Measles is a highly contagious disease that spreads easily to others with near 100% transmission. While generally a flu-like illness with a rash from which children recover, about 5% of measles patients develop pneumonia, 1 in 1000 develop brain swelling with deafness and/or intellectual disability resulting and 3 per 1000 die.
A vaccine to prevent measles was introduced in 1963 with dramatic results. Prior to 1963, nearly every child got measles by age 15. There were 3-4 million cases a year, with 48,000 hospitalizations and 500 deaths annually. This fell dramatically after the vaccine was available. Reported cases fell 97% between 1965 and 1968 and measles was declared “eliminated” in the U.S. in 2000.
Unfortunately, this very success has led to complacency, and the disinformation by “anti-vaxxers” has contributed to a falling off of vaccination rates.
Not surprisingly, measles has recurred. In 2024, the U.S. saw 16 outbreaks (3 or more cases) involving a total of 285 cases. As of the end of February, 2025 has seen 9 outbreaks, with a total of 164 cases. The best known is the Texas outbreak, but there have been others around the country. 95% of the cases involve people who were unvaccinated.
Do you need to worry?
If you were born before 1957, you almost certainly had measles, whether you remember this or not, and if you were born before 1963, you probably did. Natural infection gives virtually 100% life-long immunity, so there is no need to get a booster.
If you were vaccinated between 1963 and 1968, you may have received a less-effective vaccine and may want to have your antibody levels checked with a blood test.
If you received two doses of the standard MMR (measles/mumps/rubella), you are 97%+ protected unless you have an immune deficiency.
So, for most of us, protected by childhood infection or vaccination, no worries. For our children and grandchildren: GET VACCINATED. The MMR does NOT cause autism, and there have been no deaths from the vaccine in healthy people. Children with immune deficiency, a very rare condition, cannot get the vaccine, and depend on the other 99% of us preventing outbreaks by getting vaccinated.
Edward Hoffer MD is Associate Professor of Medicine, part-time, at Harvard.
What Does The Doctor Say?
By Dr. Edward Hoffer