As many as three of every 1,000 persons with measles will die in the U.S. In the developing world, the rate is much higher, with death occurring in about one of every 100 persons with measles.
Measles causes encephalitis in around 1 in 1,000 children. Encephalitis often causes permanent brain damage or mental retardation. Death occurs in 1 out of 3 000 cases. Complications are more common among people whose immune systems are weakened due to treatment or a serious illness (e.g. leukemia), and among babies under a year old.
In rare cases, measles can lead to the following conditions:
serious eye disorders, such as an infection of the optic nerve (the nerve that transmits information from the eye to the brain), known as optic neuritis, which can lead to blindness
heart and nervous system problems
a fatal brain complication known as subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), which can sometimes occur several years after measles – however, this is very rare, occurring in only one in every 25,000 cases of measles.
Babies too young to be vaccinated are at great risk.
yes they are a really big deal...they are not like chicken pox which can be a really big deal for an adult
They have a vaccine against chicken pox because we now realize that it's wise to prevent any disease possible rather then letting it ravage the body. Some diseases, like the chicken pox, may have no immediately negative effect on the body. However, there are things that can effect the body later on because of the chicken pox, like Shingles.
Shingles has its own set of potential complications. So while a child might be healthy at the time they are infected with chicken pox, later in life they may not be so fortunate.
And it's all preventable.
