Following two recent cases of measles in Michigan, state health officials are urging families to stay up to date on vaccinations.
Lynn Sutfin is a spokesperson for Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. She said several countries in western Europe are experiencing measles outbreaks, and some of those cases have spread to Michigan via unvaccinated travelers.
“Particularly if you are planning to travel to europe, you might want to look at your own immunization record, make sure you had everything when you were a kid, and then look at your children as well before you get on the plane”
Officials said all it takes is a small pocket of people who have not been vaccinated to trigger an outbreak.
Sutfin said it’s best to get allvaccinations at least two weeks before an overseas trip.
Terry Adams is with Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. She said by not vaccinating, not only are you putting yourself at risk, but you’re also putting the people around you at risk.
“There’s a lot of folks who can’t receive vaccines, those that are immunocompromised, those who are on chemotherapy, pregnant women, so we are really worried about those folks who can not receive vaccines, so it’s up to the rest of us to protect those who can not be vaccinated”
Adams also said vaccines are very safe.
“We encounter thousands upon thousands of foreign substances every day, on countertops, we breathe in foreign substances, so this is nothing that the body can’t handle on a given day at any time, whether we’re infants, adolescents, or adults.”
Adams said there are two types of vaccines, live attenuated and inactivated. Live attenuated vaccines, such as the measles vaccine, are virtually identical to the natural infection, but it’s a very small type of dose and has been made harmless.
Inactivated vaccines contain a killed virus and are safe to give to immunocompromised patients such as pregnant women or those who are on chemotherapy.
Health officials said it is important to stay up to date on all immunizations, especially before travelling out of the country, or before going back to school.