Sonya Bateson: Why measles vaccinations and precautions are essential

Other people depend on you for protection from diseases. Photo / file

COMMENT
"Two unborn babies die after mothers catch measles during pregnancy."

It's a headline that will strike fear into any expecting mother's heart.

The disease that's been spreading around our country - including up to 58 people here in the Bay of Plenty - appears to have claimed its first victims.

There's a bit of grey area here as the Waitematā and Auckland DHB could not be certain the babies died from measles.

But what we do know is this: Both pregnant women were being treated for measles; the disease can result in foetal losses, miscarriages and lower birth weight; and two unborn babies died.

There's a reason measles, a once common childhood illness, is feared - and that's why.

It can kill.

And even though the chances of dying are small for people in good health, it can also cause life-long complications such as permanent hearing loss and brain damage.

If you escape permanent damage, it's still an unpleasant experience. Measles can lead to other complications such as ear infections, diarrhoea, pneumonia, seizures and swelling of the brain.

About one in 10 people who catch measles need hospital treatment, according to the Ministry of Health.

The hospitalisation rate has been higher during the Bay's outbreak. Of the 58 Bay people confirmed to have caught the disease, 22 of them were hospitalised - 38 per cent.

Despite that, we've been lucky enough to escape the worst of the outbreak and haven't recorded any measles-related deaths.

But that relative silver lining doesn't do much to ease the minds of us pregnant women.

Luckily for newborns, they receive some antibodies from their mothers in the placenta, which confers a level of immunity from many diseases - depending, of course, on what diseases the mother is immune to.

My blood tests show that I have immunity received from my childhood vaccinations, which should protect my baby for a time.

Breast milk also contains some antibodies.

But both of these protections are only temporary.

Once our babies enter the world, it's up to the people around them to protect them from diseases like measles.

You can do this by being up to date on vaccinations, by practising good hygiene and by staying away from vulnerable people when you're feeling sick.

Lives are depending on it.