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| Image Source: theguardian.com |
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of measles cases more than tripled in 2014. From just under 200 in 2013, there were 603 reported cases and 20 outbreaks in the first 11 months of 2014. And the majority of the people who contracted measles were not vaccinated.
While the rate of vaccination remains high in the United States, a new and troubling trend -- vaccine refusal -- is raising fears in the medical community. Vaccine-preventable diseases are popping up all over the country. In June 2014, California was declared a hotbed for whooping cough, with more than 10,000 reported cases. Reports call the California epidemic the worst in 55 years, with the disease spreading to other states. Public health officials maintain that vaccine refusal played a role in the epidemic. California is one of the states that allow parents to refuse vaccines for philosophical reasons.
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| Image Source: consciouslifenews.com |
Parents are refusing to get their children immunized for a variety of reasons. Some parents are afraid of the much-disproved link between autism and the MMR vaccine, while some believe that the toxins in vaccines cause harm to the body.
The pediatric community is responding to this trend by stepping up its efforts at parent education. Numerous medical organizations and journals such as the Immunization Action Coalition (IAC,) the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the World Health Organization (WHO) have made available through their websites various resources to assist medical professionals in vaccine education and parent counselling.
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| Image Source: theconversation.com |
Misinformation on vaccine safety and efficacy abounds on the Internet. While there is no way to prevent unfounded rumors from spreading in today's age of lightning-fast communication, physicians can do their part to ensure the safety of the majority through meaningful patient education.
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