Measles (also known as Rubeola, morbilli, or English measles), is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes and a generalized, maculopapular, erythematous rash.
Measles is spread through respiration (contact with fluids from an infected person's nose and mouth, either directly or through aerosol transmission), and is highly contagious—90% of people without immunity sharing living space with an infected person will catch it. An asymptomatic incubation period occurs nine to twelve days from initial exposure and infectivity lasts from two to four days prior, until two to five days following the onset of the rash (i.e. four to nine days infectivity in total).
Read more about Measles: Signs and Symptoms, Cause, Diagnosis, Prevention, Treatment, Prognosis, Epidemiology, Evolution, Genotypes
Famous quotes containing the word measles:
“I cant think of a single supposedly Black issue that hasnt wasted the original Black target group and then spread like the measles to outlying white experience.”
—June Jordan (b. 1936)