A slight correction. MMR is never given to a pregnant woman. Titers are checked to plan who should receive it during the postpartum period.
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Thank you for the correction!
Deleted. Wrong thread
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I am hopeful because I had feared a much quicker spread. 3 cases still in NJ it seems, same as mid week. First case now reported in PA. But maybe they can contain all off these and prevent more deaths. 
CDC issues level one travel health notice
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued level one Travel Health Notices (THNs) due to a âhighly contagious virus outbreak.â Currently, 57 countries are affected by the outbreak, and travelers and residents are advised to follow hygiene precautions.
- Many international destinations are reporting increased numbers of cases of measles.
- Travelers are at risk of measles if they have not been fully vaccinated at least two weeks prior to departure or have not had measles in the past and travel internationally.
- The majority of measles cases imported into the United States occur in unvaccinated US residents who become infected during international travel.
- All international travelers should be fully vaccinated against measles with the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, including an early dose for infants 6-11 months, according to CDCâs measles vaccination recommendations for international travel .
- Travelers should seek medical care if they develop a rash, high fever, cough, runny nose, or red, watery eyes. Measles is highly contagious. Travelers with suspected measles should notify the healthcare facility before visiting so staff can implement precautions to prevent spread within the facility.
What is measles?
Measles is a highly contagious virus that lives in the nose and throat mucus of an infected person. It can spread to others through coughing and sneezing .
The measles virus can live for up to two hours in an airspace or on a surface after an infected person leaves an area. If other people breathe the contaminated air or touch the infected surface, then touch their eyes, noses, or mouths, they can become infected. People can spread measles up to four days before and four days after a rash.
Signs and symptoms of measles include maculopapular rash, high fever, and a cough, runny nose, or red, watery eyes.
Measles can be severe in all age groups and can lead to serious complications, such as pneumonia (infection of the lungs) and death. Several groups are more likely to suffer from measles complications, including children younger than five years of age, adults older than 20 years of age, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems, such as from leukemia or HIV infection. Common complications are ear infections and diarrhea. Serious complications include pneumonia and encephalitis (infection of the brain).
In 2019 there was a big measles outbreak in New York, over 1,000 cases.
Currently the countries with large measles outbreaks are Pakistan, India,
Thailand, Yemen and a few others.
I had the rubella vaccine in the 60s. And I had the measles as a child but I donât know if it was simple measles or rubella. In those days we just stayed home from school and I didnât see a doctor.
I think I was checked for immunity when I was pregnant in the '90s, but I see my doctor later this month, so Iâll ask her. I want to make sure Iâm covered before going to Poland in May.
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made an appointment for April 1 to get an MMR. They said I had to wait a bit because I had a TDap in the past 4 weeks. DH will schedule an MMR as well â neither one of us have ever had measles, and given our age,probably had the single inactivate vaccine way back when.
I sent a text to my brother born in 1966, probably vaccinated in 1967, that he had never had the measles and he should get vaccinated. I know he also never had chickenpox (and never had a vaccine). The three oldest of us had chickenpox in 1960 and then the 5 of us had measles in 1962 (although according to my mother my youngest brother only had â3 little spotsâ so I think he may not have had measles).
Will he listen? No.
Of course I will ask my PCP, but it was mentioned above that people taking immune suppressants canât take live vaccines. I take a small (12.5mg/week) dose of methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis. Would that count?
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Web searching on the topic of methotrexate and vaccines or MMR does not seem to give a strong consensus on the matter, although some pages say that live vaccines can be problematic when on methotrexate and other pages say that any vaccines would be less effective in causing an immune response when on methotrexate. You may want to ask your PCP about whether you can pause the methotrexate to get MMR or other vaccines.
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My nephew who is a dermatologist says that his patients who are on a biologic Dupixent have had no problems getting live vaccines tho they are warned about it potentially being an issue.
Agree to ask your internist & rheumatologist about getting live vaccine while taking your rx.
Iâm glad she had a mild case of shingles. A very good friend of mine got shingles before she was old enough to get the shot. It ended up in her eye and she has almost completely lost sight in one eye. (And it continues to get worse. Not fixable with glasses.) She begged all her friends to get the shot even though technically most of us werenât old enough either.
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When my husband got it he found his âmildâ case was still really hard ti deal with. He said he read about people committing suicide because they couldnât handle the pain.
Responded in a new thread about chicken pox and shingles:
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You should definitely ask your pcp. I think you cannot have any live vaccine on methotrexate just as you cannot for any other immunosuppression (like ProGraf , stellara, etc.) therapy but definitely ask first. Your risk of complications might be higher than the risk of catching the measles, depending on personal factors.
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The confirmed case in Pennsylvania is in my county. I have a message into my PCP for guidance about the vaccine (born in 1962, no knowledge of having measles and no vaccine record.)
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This typically comes with a recommendation for an adult measles or MMR vaccination if not contraindicated by medical conditions or medications, since you were not born early enough (prior to 1957) to be assumed to have gotten measles, and do not have knowledge of a measles infection or a dose of live attenuated measles vaccine (some vaccines given prior to 1968 were inactivated ones that were less effective).
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I am reading that the CDC is saying people born after 1957 need an adult MMR vaccine. I think many slightly younger people, like me (born 1960), got these diseases or shots as kids (not an MMR vaccine, as they were 3 separate shots at the time). I think it probably makes sense to get tested for immunity first if you are in these border years. That is what I would do if I were @Embracethemess. (no vaccine record doesnât mean you didnât get the vaccine - we didnât keep the kinds of medical records back then as we do now).
I know I got mumps (spread it to my college aged male speech therapist who was fine, but my family was worried about him). I got the measles and rubella vaccines (delayed a few years because my sister had a bad reaction which meant unlike many people my exact age I didnât get one during those ineffective years.) I wasnât sure about chicken pox (but got the blood test a few years ago to say I had them).
I appreciate people being cautious, but at the same time, I donât think we all need to go running for an adult MMR that we may not need. Unless you are off to Africa (in which case you probably need a whole series of vaccines not just MMR).
Us old people probably all need a booster TDaP shot (that one should be done every 10 years).
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I addition to travel to Africa, etc., I would seriously consider the vaccine if you fall into the risk group (born after 1957 and vaccinated before 1968) and you have close contact with a baby under age 1. They are sitting ducks as they donât get vaccinated until 12 months. Yes, they can do it at 6 months, but apparently, it is not as effective at that age.
We have an almost 4 month old granddaughter who we see often. I got the MMR yesterday for her 
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