MEASLES, MUMPS, AND RUBELLA VACCINES

WHAT YOU NEED TO KN0W

1. Why get vaccinated?

Measles, mumps, and rubella are serious diseases.

Measles
   Measles virus causes rash, cough, runny nose, eye
    irritation, and fever.
   It can lead to ear infection, pneumonia, seizures
    (jerking and staring), brain damage, and death.

Mumps
   Mumps virus causes fever, headache, and swollen
    glands.
   It can lead to deafness, meningitis (infection of the
    brain and spinal cord covering), painful swelling of
    the testicles or ovaries, and, rarely, death.

Rubella (German Measles)
   Rubella virus causes rash, mild fever, and arthritis
    (mostly in women).
   If a woman gets rubella while she is pregnant, she
    could have a miscarriage or her baby could be
    born with serious birth defects.

You or your child could catch these diseases by
being around someone who has them. They spread
from person to person through the air.

Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine
can prevent these diseases.

Most children who get their MMR shots will not get
these diseases. Many more children would get them
if we stopped vaccinating.

2. Who should get MMR vaccine and when?

Children should get 2 doses of MMR vaccine:

  - The first at 12-15 months of age
  - and the second at 4-6 years of age.

These are the recommended ages. But children can
get the second dose at any age, as long as it is at
least 28 days after the first dose.

Some adults should also get MMR vaccine:
Generally, anyone 18 years of age or older, who was
born after 1956, should get at least one dose of
MMR vaccine, unless they can show that they have
had either the vaccines or the diseases.

Ask your doctor or nurse for more information.

MMR vaccine may be given at the same time as
other vaccines.

3. Some people should not get MMR vaccine or should wait

* People should not get MMR vaccine who have
  ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to
  gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or to a previous
  dose of MMR vaccine.

* People who are moderately or severely ill at the
  time the shot is scheduled should usually wait until
  they recover before getting MMR vaccine.

* Pregnant women should wait to get MMR vaccine
  until after they have given birth. Women should
  avoid getting pregnant for 4 weeks after getting
  MMR vaccine.

* Some people should check with their doctor about
  whether they should get MMR vaccine, including
  anyone who:
    - Has HIV/AIDS, or another disease that affects
      the immune system
    - Is being treated with drugs that affect the immune
      system, such as steroids, for 2 weeks or longer.
    - Has any kind of cancer
    - Is taking cancer treatment with x-rays or drugs
    - Has ever had a low platelet count (a blood disorder)

* People who recently had a transfusion or were
  given other blood products should ask their doctor
  when they may get MMR vaccine

Ask your doctor or nurse for more information.

4. What are the risks from MMR vaccine?

A vaccine, like any medicine, is capable of causing
serious problems, such as severe allergic reactions.
The risk of MMR vaccine causing serious harm, or
death, is extremely small.

Getting MMR vaccine is much safer than getting
any of these three diseases.

Most people who get MMR vaccine do not have
any problems with it.

Mild Problems
   Fever (up to 1 person out of 6)
   Mild rash (about 1 person out of 20)
   Swelling of glands in the cheeks or neck (rare)
If these problems occur, it is usually within 7-12 days after
the shot. They occur less often after the second dose.

Moderate Problems
   Seizure (jerking or staring) caused by fever (about
    1 out of 3,000 doses)
   Temporary pain and stiffness in the joints, mostly
    in teenage or adult women (up to 1 out of 4)
   Temporary low platelet count, which can cause a
    bleeding disorder (about 1 out of 30,000 doses)

Severe Problems (Very Rare)
   Serious allergic reaction (less than 1 out of a million
    doses)
   Several other severe problems have been known to
    occur after a child gets MMR vaccine. But this
    happens so rarely, experts cannot be sure whether
    they are caused by the vaccine or not. These include:
      - Deafness
      - Long-term seizures, coma, or lowered consciousness
      - Permanent brain damage

5. What if there is a moderate or severe reaction?

What should I look for?

Any unusual conditions, such as a serious allergic
reaction, high fever or behavior changes. Signs of a
serious allergic reaction include difficulty breathing,
hoarseness or wheezing, hives, paleness, weakness, a
fast heart beat or dizziness within a few minutes to
a few hours after the shot. A high fever or seizure,
if it occurs, would happen 1 or 2 weeks after the
shot.

What should I do?
   Call a doctor, or get the person to a doctor right away.
   Tell your doctor what happened, the date and time it
    happened, and when the vaccination was given.
   Ask your doctor, nurse, or health department to file a
    Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS)
    form. Or call VAERS yourself at 1-800-822-7967 or
    visit their website at http://www.vaers.org

6. The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program

In the rare event that you or your child has a
serious reaction to a vaccine, a federal program has
been created to help you pay for the care of those
who have been harmed.

For details about the National Vaccine Injury
Compensation Program, call 1-800-338-2382 or visit
the program's website at http://www.hrsa.gov/osp/vicp

7. How can I learn more?
   Ask your doctor or nurse. They can give you the
    vaccine package insert or suggest other sources of
    information.
   Call your local or state health department's
    immunization program.
   Contact the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
    (CDC):
      - Call 1-800-232-2522 (English)
      - Call 1-800-232-0233 (Espanol)
      - Visit the National Immunization Program's website at
        http://www.cdc.gov/nip

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH and HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Immunization Program

Vaccine Information Statement              ]
MMR
1/15/03
42 U.S.C.  300aa-26J

























This document can be found on the CDC website at:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/downloads/vis-mmr.txt