Measles misinformation is hurting our kids while Trump government self-destructs

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It is not surprising that the Trump administration is dismantling the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Anti-government and pseudo-science sentiment permeated his campaign. What is surprising is the rapidity and depth to which it took place. With constituent anger boiling over, new leaders were chosen who opted to destroy with a chainsaw rather than support and fix existing infrastructure. All of this is occurring while our nation is under siege from an all but extinct contagion — measles.
Anti-vaxxers have increased their influence and have minimized the dangers of measles infections, while exaggerating the risks of vaccinations. Just this year, we have lost two unvaccinated healthy children to measles. One to two in every 1,000 cases will die. Measles can cause delayed symptoms, blindness, deafness and impaired cognitive performance. Measles can also suppress the immune system for at least a year, eliminating 11% to 73% of one's antibody reserves.
Of concern are two recent studies that found that immune damage can persist for years. Patients can also develop a rare but almost always fatal brain disease, subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), 10 or more years after their infection. We do not have an effective plan to stop this epidemic. Instead, our new leaders are providing misinformation and fueling conspiracy theories.
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Below are the facts:
The vaccine provides decades if not a lifetime of protection. Parents have been told that the measles vaccine's protection 'wanes very quickly." In fact, if you received the two-dose attenuated live virus vaccine after 1968, you should have lifelong immunity with 97% efficacy. The vaccine is much safer than getting the infection. According to the Infectious Disease Society of America, there have been no deaths from the vaccine in healthy children.
Importantly, the vaccine should not be given to immunocompromised individuals. However, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll (KFF), 19% of the public mistakenly believes the measles vaccine is probably or definitely more dangerous than getting an infection. This is a disturbing finding for a disease which requires a 95% rate of immunity to prevent outbreaks.
The vaccine does not cause autism. A Danish study of 657,461 children found there was no difference in autism between those vaccinated and unvaccinated. Statements that controlled studies regarding the risks of autism and vaccines have not been done are false. However, according to the KFF Poll, 25% of the public mistakenly believes the measles (MMR) vaccine probably or definitely causes autism. Unfortunately, to sort out this debacle, a man who the State Board of Maryland reportedly found worked as a medical doctor without a license or even attending medical school was appointed to restudy vaccines and autism.
Vitamin A does not prevent or cure measles. It will reduce complications in malnourished children, but its effect on children without a deficiency is unknown. What is known is that too much Vitamin A can be dangerous and that some children with measles in Texas have been treated for Vitamin A toxicity. The recent KFF Poll found 25% of the public mistakenly believe Vitamin A was probably or definitely effective in preventing measles.
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The federal government's response to this disinformation and falling vaccination rates has not only been muted, but profoundly counterproductive. The secretary of Health and Human Services even praised a doctor who was treating patients while he was infected with measles. This not only placed children at risk but downplayed the dangers of the infection.
At the same time, the CDC has been hobbled with massive budget cuts and layoffs. The agency reportedly had to scrap plans to help one Texas school system because of layoffs. CDC funds to state health departments, including $150 million in Kentucky, are at grave risk of being cut.
Another federal government self-destructive behavior is not collecting needed data, the old "out of sight, out of mind" mentality. This has affected everything from drug use to maternal mortality to climate change. Public health has been directly affected, with the FDA recently not publicizing an E. coli outbreak in our food supply, and the CDC suppressing their measles forecast, which also encouraged vaccinations.
Hyper-politicization of the measles epidemic is also hindering our ability to stop the virus' spread. Seventh-six percent of Democrats are worried about the measles outbreak, compared to only 28% of Republicans.
Vaccines are one of the greatest success stories of modern medicine. Since 1975, an estimated 154 million lives have been saved with vaccines. The consequences of our abandonment of public health are only now becoming apparent. Unfortunately, it is our children who appear to be paying the heftiest price. A price which for some will be paid with interest for decades to come.
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Kevin Kavanagh is a retired physician from Somerset, Kentucky and chairman of Health Watch USA.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Trump government destruction worsens measles misinformation | Opinion