After Treating Hospitalized Children, Pennsylvania Doctor Urges Vaccination as Measles Outbreak Grows

Children face severe illness

Dr. Evan Shirey, a pediatric infectious disease doctor based in Hershey, Pennsylvania, said he has seen many children and babies admitted to his hospital with serious measles illness.

He described encephalitis, a brain infection, as one complication doctors fear. Some children may become unresponsive, while others struggle to breathe and need oxygen, respiratory support or, in extreme cases, a ventilator.

Outbreak reaches historic scale

The CDC has confirmed more than 4,000 measles cases this year as the United States faces its largest outbreak of the virus in 35 years. The report says nearly one-fifth of cases are among children younger than five. The figures on vaccination status differ: the opening account says 95% of cases involve unvaccinated people, while the transcript says more than 90%.

Doctor backs vaccination

Shirey called the MMR vaccine extremely safe and effective, noting it has been used in essentially the same form since the late 1960s and that billions of people have received it. He said vulnerable people have depended for decades on others being vaccinated at a high enough rate to provide herd immunity. Shirey also said the outbreak highlights the need for honest communication about health issues and linked it in part to the anti-vaccine movement.