Wastewater is now helping track measles spread around the US

CNN As measles cases rise to precipitously high levels in the US this year there s a new tool to help track the spread wastewater Wastewater surveillance rose to prominence during the Covid- pandemic as testing sewage for virus particles helped provide early warning signs of increased transmission and fill the gaps as matter reporting scaled back Now WastewaterSCAN has developed the first national wastewater monitoring plan to detect measles in places where people are infected with the virus It has the prospective to identify manageable cases days before an individual shows features or seeks care The new tool is available for use in nearly wastewater medication facilities across states At least measles cases have been broadcasted in the US this year according to a CNN tally using facts from state soundness departments A large multistate outbreak centered in West Texas accounts for the vast majority Texas has revealed outbreak-associated cases New Mexico announced cases and Oklahoma broadcasted cases approved and three probable as of Tuesday Cases in Kansas which the state wellness department says may also be linked to the outbreak have reached as of Monday Experts say these numbers are all a severe undercount because multiple cases are going unreported However the nation is now fewer than cases away from the total communicated for all of the year with the highest number of measles cases since the infection was declared eliminated in the US in South Dakota shared its first measles development of the year Monday bringing the total number of states that have disclosed at least one matter in up to The new matter in South Dakota is in an adult who travelled internationally according to a news release from the state medical department The US Centers for Complaint Control and Prevention in recent days updated its measles guidance for travelers Travelers can catch measles in multiple passage settings including journey hubs like airports and train stations on masses transportation like airplanes and trains at tourist attractions and at large crowded events a CDC advisory says Infected travelers can bring the affection back to their home communities where it can spread rapidly among people who are not immune CDC recommends that all travelers be fully vaccinated against measles before traveling to any international destination Other latest examples include a development in Minnesota that was broadcasted in an adult who was exposed during domestic air advance and the New Jersey medical department has warned of prospective measles exposure in the Newark airport There have been at least outbreaks in the US this year according to the CDC accounting for of cases The CDC s input is limited to substantiated cases and lags behind CNN s tally for this year The vast majority of cases in the US this year have been in people who are unvaccinated only about of proven cases have been in people who had received one or two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella MMR vaccine according to the CDC Two doses of the MMR vaccine are effective against measles The CDC recommends two doses as the best protection against the affection with the first dose given at to months of age and the second between ages and Childhood vaccination rates have been declining across the US for years with MMR vaccination coverage among kindergartners falling below the recommended threshold for at least four years New research from Johns Hopkins University published Monday in the journal JAMA emphasizes how widespread the decline has been MMR vaccination rates among children have dropped in more than three-quarters of US counties with an average drop of between and according to the inquiry Vaccination rates have surged in specific places that are experiencing measles outbreaks however In New Mexico nearly twice as plenty of MMR vaccines have been administered this year than there were at this point last year according to figures from the state wellbeing department And a modern analysis of vitality records by Truveta a health-care details and analytics company shows that early vaccination rates jumped among infants in Texas MMR vaccination rates among -month-olds in Texas this year are more than eight times higher than they were in and in March and April about in children who received their first measles shot in Texas had gotten it early before their first birthday At least people with measles have been hospitalized this year according to the CDC and there have been three deaths two children in Texas and one adult in New Mexico all of whom were unvaccinated