Disneyland Measles Outbreak Blamed On Parents Who Won't Vaccinate

(RTTNews) - Poor vaccination rates are to be blamed for the ongoing measles outbreak linked to the Disneyland in California, a study says.

According to a new study, the vaccination rates among the exposed people during the measles outbreak might have been as low as 50 percent and no higher than 86 percent. The study was conducted by researchers from MIT, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. The research letter was published in journal JAMA Pediatrics.

The vaccination rate is far lower than the 96 to 99 percent required to preserve herd immunity and prevent future outbreak considering the highly contagious nature of measles.

"Clearly, MMR vaccination rates in many of the communities that have been affected by this outbreak fall well below the necessary threshold to sustain herd immunity, thus placing the greater population at risk as well," the researchers said.

From January 1 to March 13, 176 Americans from 17 states were reported to have measles, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Most of the cases were linked to Disneyland in California where the outbreak likely started from a traveler who became infected overseas with measles, then visited the amusement park while infectious. However, no source has been identified.

Measles typically begins with fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes and within a few days a red rash appears, usually first on the face and then spreads downward to the rest of the body. Measles is a highly infectious, airborne disease.