Latest news with #RobertShmerling
Miami Herald
13-03-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
How long do measles vaccines last? Do adults need booster shots? Five things to know
A disease once thought eradicated in the United States is back again following outbreaks in 12 states, leading to the death of at least one child, health officials say. More than 200 measles cases have now been confirmed, including one confirmed fatality from the disease and a second suspected fatality, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest data, as of March 7. Those under the age of 19 have been hit the hardest, accounting for 79% of cases so far in 2025, the CDC says. While the vast majority of cases are among people who had not been vaccinated, those who received the measles vaccine in their childhood may be wondering about the shot's longevity and effectiveness later in life, including whether there is a booster for adults. Here are five things to know about navigating the measles outbreak. Where are the measles outbreaks? Health officials have confirmed measles cases in 12 states: Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington, according to the CDC. The largest outbreak is in west Texas, where more than 20 people have been hospitalized so far and where the first measles death since 2015 was recorded, according to Harvard professor Robert Shmerling. A few cases have been confirmed in previously vaccinated people, but the other 94% of cases are among unvaccinated people, primarily children, the CDC says. The majority of hospitalizations from the disease are among children under the age of 5, and the confirmed measles fatality in Texas was a 'school-aged' child, according to Texas Health and Human Services. The second death under investigation in New Mexico was reported as an unvaccinated adult, the New Mexico Department of Health said. In comparison to last year, there were a total of 285 measles cases reported in 2024, including 120 in children under 5, 88 in children and teens and 77 in adults older than 20, according to the CDC. Of those, 89% of cases were among unvaccinated individuals. When are measles vaccines recommended? Two vaccines against measles are available and recommended in the United States. The MMR vaccine includes protection against measles, mumps and rubella. The MMRV vaccine adds varicella, or chickenpox, to the same regimen, according to the CDC. Both vaccines are recommended as part of the regular childhood immunization program with other shots, the CDC says, and deciding between the two should follow a discussion with your child's health care provider. The MMR vaccine is given in two doses in early childhood. The first dose is given to infants aged 12 to 15 months, and the second dose is given to kids aged 4 to 6 years, according to the CDC. If children were not vaccinated on this schedule, doctors may recommend the vaccines later in life, and infants traveling internationally can get both doses before their first birthday, the CDC says. The MMRV vaccine is approved only for children between the ages of 12 months and 12 years, and includes a 12-to-15-month dose and a 4-to-6-year dose. The second dose can be given as early as 3 months after the first dose if needed, the CDC says. If you haven't ever been vaccinated, the MMR vaccine can be administered to someone in the first 72 hours after they were knowingly exposed to measles and that can offer some protection against the worst symptoms of the disease, according to the CDC. How long are measles vaccinations effective? If you were vaccinated as a child, you most likely will not need another shot as an adult, the CDC says. One dose of the MMR vaccine has been found to be 93% effective against measles, and a second dose raises the effectiveness to 97%. While the vaccine is effective, it doesn't mean you can never be infected with measles. Effective means you are less likely to become infected, but even if you do, the symptoms will likely be milder and you are less likely to spread the disease to other people, according to the CDC. 'Some vaccinated people may still get measles, mumps or rubella if they are exposed to the viruses,' the CDC says. 'It could be that their immune system didn't respond as well as they should have to the vaccine; their immune system's ability to fight the infection decreased over time; or they have prolonged, close contact with someone who has the virus.' Measles is highly contagious and spreads more easily than the flu, COVID-19 and even Ebola, according to Harvard Medical School. Communities therefore are most easily protected through herd immunity, meaning enough people are vaccinated against measles in a given area that the disease is unable to spread even if the few unvaccinated people are infected. Didn't we eradicate measles in the U.S.? While measles was first observed and recorded by a Persian doctor in the ninth century, the disease wasn't a nationally notifiable disease in the United States until 1912, according to the CDC. Between 1912 and the 1960s, when a vaccine was developed, nearly all children got the measles before the age of 15, infecting between 3 and 4 million people per year, the CDC says. Each year, these infections led to 48,000 hospitalizations, 400 to 500 deaths and 1,000 cases of encephalitis, or brain swelling. Then, in 1954 measles was successfully isolated from the blood of a 13-year-old and could be used for vaccine development, which came a decade later, the CDC says. A weak vaccine was licensed in 1963, but a stronger, more effective vaccine was created and approved in 1968, according to the CDC. This vaccine is the same strain used today, though the shot is now combined with vaccines against mumps, rubella and varicella to create the MMR and MMRV shot. The shot was so effective that a vaccination program dropped measles cases 80% between 1980 and 1981, according to the CDC. Case numbers continued to decline until measles was declared 'eliminated' in the U.S. in 2000, meaning the continuous spread of the disease was stopped for more than 12 months, the CDC says. This doesn't mean that there were never any cases, but they were considered isolated and those with the disease may have been infected outside the country. This success was directly attributed to the high vaccination rate of children, which has since wavered and allowed an 'eradicated' disease to return. What are the signs and symptoms of measles? 'Measles is a highly contagious viral illness that typically begins with fever, cough, coryza (runny nose), and conjunctivitis (pink eye), lasting 2-4 days prior to rash onset,' the CDC says. The virus is spread through direct contact or through the air from an infected person's breathing, coughing and sneezing, the CDC says. The virus can stay infectious in the air and on surfaces for up to 2 hours. 'Infected people are contagious from 4 days before the rash starts through 4 days afterward. The incubation period for measles, from exposure to fever, is usually about 7-10 days, and from exposure to rash onset is usually about 10-14 days (with a range of 7 to 21 days),' the CDC says. Anyone who suspects they may have measles, or knows they have been exposed to measles, should isolate themselves in a private room and alert your doctor. A test will be issued to confirm an infection, typically a nasal or throat swab. Doctors may then recommend an MMR vaccine if you have never been vaccinated or will provide additional care. Measles does not have a specific antiviral therapy. Anyone with a fever of more than 101 degrees Fahrenheit with an associated rash and cough, and if they traveled internationally or to a measles hotspot in the United States, should be tested for measles.
Arab Times
05-03-2025
- Health
- Arab Times
Why chronic inflammation can lead to heart attacks, strokes, and more
NEW YORK, March 5: Why do our ankles swell when sprained, or our skin turn red or inflamed when scraped? The quick response we see is inflammation, and it plays a critical role in protecting our bodies. At its core, inflammation is the body's natural response to injury or illness, aimed at restoring health. Dr. Robert Shmerling, a rheumatologist and faculty member at Harvard Medical School, explained that inflammation helps the body heal and fight off infections. 'It's the response of the body to an illness or injury to try to restore health,' he said. While inflammation is essential for survival, it has recently come under scrutiny due to its links to chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and allergies. Reducing chronic inflammation is also seen as crucial for healthier aging. 'It's a classic double-edged sword,' said Dr. David Hafler, a neurologist at Yale School of Medicine. While necessary for survival, inflammation, when unchecked, can cause long-term harm. Inflammation is crucial in fighting infections. For example, when you have a sore throat, it becomes red and painful because your immune system is battling the infection, preventing it from spreading. Dr. Moshe Arditi, a pediatrician at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, calls this "acute inflammation," and he notes that a limited immune response during this stage is beneficial. The term "inflammation" was first coined by the Roman encyclopedist Aulus Cornelius Celcus, who defined the core signs as rubor (redness), tumor (swelling), calor (heat), and dolor (pain)—terms still used today. At a microscopic level, acute inflammation involves the body sending fluid, proteins, and white blood cells to infection or injury sites to fight pathogens and promote healing. However, while acute inflammation is life-saving, chronic inflammation can be damaging over time. Chronic inflammation is often linked to several risk factors, including obesity, smoking, and poor diet. Dr. Thaddeus Stappenbeck, chair of inflammation and immunity at the Cleveland Clinic, suspects that the modern American diet—rich in processed foods, refined sugars, and trans fats—may be a major contributor to chronic inflammation. In fact, trans fats were banned in 2015 and removed from many food products by 2018. Lifestyle factors such as lack of exercise, sleep deprivation, and stress also promote inflammation, according to Dr. Shmerling. The signs of chronic inflammation can vary but may include joint pain, fatigue, constipation, and depression. Reducing inflammation can be achieved through weight loss, regular exercise, and avoiding highly processed foods. Following a Mediterranean diet—rich in whole fruits, vegetables, and plant-based foods—has been shown to reduce inflammation. 'It's often not an on/off kind of switch,' Dr. Shmerling said. 'Inflammatory markers can improve with lifestyle changes.' Chronic disease rates have increased significantly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 129 million Americans have at least one chronic disease. The prevalence of chronic diseases has been rising steadily, with an estimated 7 million more people affected every five years, according to Stanford University. Experts believe inflammation plays a key role in this trend. Dr. Shmerling added, 'There's a fair amount of consensus that a lot of the chronic diseases we see now in higher prevalence than in the past could well be related to chronic inflammation.' When inflammation persists, it can damage organs and blood vessels. "Ongoing inflammation may lead to heart disease and the buildup of plaque in blood vessels, which can cause heart attacks and strokes,' explained Dr. Arditi. Chronic inflammation can also contribute to neurodegenerative diseases by damaging neurons in the brain. Conditions like lupus and multiple sclerosis are also linked to chronic inflammation, where the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own tissues. 'There's chronic inflammation that's ongoing and quite damaging,' Dr. Shmerling noted. Due to inflammation's connection to many diseases, patients are increasingly asking to be tested for it. While there are blood tests to measure inflammation, they are not perfect. Tests like the erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein (CRP) tests assess the level of certain proteins that correlate with inflammation in the body. However, these tests have limitations, including false positives, and must be interpreted alongside symptoms. Dr. Shmerling warned against routine screening for inflammation in healthy individuals without symptoms, saying, 'There can be normal inflammation tests even when inflammation is present, and sometimes the tests are abnormal even when it doesn't seem there is any inflammation present.' One promising test is hs-CRP, a more sensitive test that detects smaller increases in CRP levels. High CRP levels have been linked to heart attacks and strokes. Some experts suggest that hs-CRP testing should be routine, similar to cholesterol testing, to help assess risk for heart disease and stroke. However, the evidence remains mixed, which is why the test isn't widely adopted. 'There are people who are so low-risk or so high-risk that it's very unlikely the CRP is going to help you,' Dr. Shmerling said. 'There are subsets of people, maybe at moderate risk, where a CRP for cardiac risk could be helpful.' In conclusion, while inflammation is necessary for the body's defense against illness and injury, chronic inflammation is a serious health concern linked to numerous diseases. Lifestyle changes, including improved diet and exercise, are crucial for managing inflammation and reducing the risk of chronic health conditions.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Inflammation is a 'double-edged sword': How to protect against chronic disease
Why do our ankles swell when they're sprained or does our skin turn red — or inflamed — when it's scraped? That quick response is caused by inflammation — and it can save your life. At its core, inflammation is the 'response of the body to an illness or an injury to try to restore health,' said Dr. Robert Shmerling, a rheumatologist and faculty member at Harvard Medical School who helped author a report on inflammation. Inflammation has come under fire for its link to a variety of chronic diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and even allergies. Longevity experts even see reducing chronic inflammation as key to healthier aging. 'It's a classic double-edged sword,' said Dr. David Hafler, a neurologist and professor of immunobiology at Yale School of Medicine. Inflammation is necessary for survival, and without it our bodies wouldn't be able to fight off intruders like viruses and bacteria. A sore throat, for example, turns red and is painful because the immune system is fighting the infection to prevent it from spreading, which doctors call acute inflammation, said Dr. Moshe Arditi, a pediatrician and director of the infectious and immunological diseases research center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. 'Localized immune response in the acute stage — to a limited extent — is all beneficial inflammation,' he said. The discovery of inflammation dates back centuries to the Roman encyclopedist Aulus Cornelius Celcus, one of the first people to define it. Celcus described the core signs of inflammation in Latin as rubor, tumor, calore, delore. The terms translate to redness, swelling, heat and pain, which still hold true. At a microscopic level, acute inflammation includes our bodies' sending fluid, proteins and white blood cells to the sites of infections or injuries, which help fight foreign pathogens and promote healing. While inflammation can be lifesaving in the short term, there is another type of inflammation, chronic inflammation, that can damage the body over the long term. Several risk factors make your body more likely to have chronic inflammation — including obesity, which promotes a low-level inflammatory state throughout the body, tobacco smoking and diet. Dr. Thaddeus Stappenbeck, chair of inflammation and immunity at the Cleveland Clinic, suspects the modern American diet is a major source of chronic inflammation. Processed foods, refined sugars, trans fats and excessive consumption of red meat are associated with increased inflammation. The Food and Drug Administration banned trans fats in 2015, and they were finally removed from snacks, bread, cookies and other baked goods in 2018. 'I suspect that there's more people with underlying, chronic inflammation than there were in the past,' Stappenbeck said. 'I think about the way we've shifted our diet where we eat a lot of chemicals that we are not adapted to consume, and these have a number of effects on our intestines.' Shmerling said, 'Lack of exercise, lack of sleep, too much stress, all of those are lifestyle factors associated that are pro-inflammatory.' Signs may vary, but they include: Joint pain that doesn't improve. Fatigue. Constipation Depression. Weight loss, regular exercise and avoiding highly processed foods can reduce levels of inflammation in the body, Shmerling said. Studies have suggested that following a Mediterranean diet, largely plant-based with an emphasis on whole fruits and vegetables, can reduce levels of inflammation. 'It's often not an on/off kind of switch,' he said. 'We don't have perfect ways to measure inflammation after making a lifestyle modification, but inflammatory markers can improve with lifestyle changes.' An estimated 129 million people in the United States have at least one chronic disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The prevalence of chronic disease has grown by about 7 million people every five years, according to estimates from Stanford University. The causes of chronic disease are complicated, but experts are increasingly convinced that inflammation is playing a role. 'There's a fair amount of consensus that a lot of the chronic diseases we see now in higher prevalence than in the past could well be related to chronic inflammation,' Shmerling said. What comes first — the inflammation or the disease? When the body is in an inflammatory state, it can start to destroy the very things it needs to function, such as our vital organs and blood vessels. 'Ongoing inflammation may lead to heart disease and building of plaque in the blood vessels, which can lead to heart attack and strokes," said Arditi, of Cedars-Sinai. 'Long-term inflammation in your brain may lead to development of neurodegenerative diseases by damaging neurons and interfering with normal brain function.' Autoimmune disorders like lupus or multiple sclerosis are also linked to chronic inflammation as the immune system starts to attack various parts of the body in friendly fire. 'The body is not distinguishing properly between itself and an outside intruder or a pathogen,' Shmerling said. 'There's chronic inflammation that's ongoing and quite damaging.' Diseases including Parkinson's and even diabetes all have inflammatory components to them, Stappenbeck said. Because of inflammation's close relationship to a host of diseases, he's not surprised by patients coming in asking to be checked for it. 'I think there's a desire from patients to say, 'Can you actually detect this in me earlier, before I get super sick?'' he said. There are blood tests for inflammation, but they aren't perfect. They don't provide clear answers about where the inflammation may be lurking in the body. There can also be false positives. That's why experts say the tests must be interpreted along with symptoms. One of the most common tests is called the erythrocyte sedimentation rate, a blood test that measures the level of certain proteins that correlate with the amount of inflammation in the body. Another test assesses c-reactive protein (CRP), a protein the liver produces in response to inflammation. Because of the limitations, Shmerling doesn't recommend that healthy people with no symptoms be routinely screened for inflammation. 'There can be normal inflammation tests even when inflammation is present, and sometimes the tests are abnormal even when it doesn't seem there is any inflammation present,' he said. 'So they're not perfect.' Stappenbeck agreed. 'I don't think there's much of a role for it, actually,' he said. There is some potential for a test called hs-CRP, a more sensitive test that can find smaller increases in c-reactive protein in the blood. High levels of that protein in the blood have been linked to heart attacks and strokes. Some argue that this test should be done routinely, just like checking cholesterol, to determine who is more at risk of heart attacks and stroke. The evidence, however, has been mixed, which is why the test isn't widely performed. 'There are people who are so low-risk or so high-risk that it's very unlikely the CRP is going to help you,' Shmerling said. 'There are subsets of people, maybe at moderate risk, where a CRP for cardiac risk could be helpful.'This article was originally published on
NBC News
04-03-2025
- Health
- NBC News
Inflammation is a 'double-edged sword': How to protect against chronic disease
Why do our ankles swell when they're sprained or does our skin turn red — or inflamed — when it's scraped? That quick response is caused by inflammation — and it can save your life. At its core, inflammation is the 'response of the body to an illness or an injury to try to restore health,' said Dr. Robert Shmerling, a rheumatologist and faculty member at Harvard Medical School who helped author a report on inflammation. Inflammation has come under fire for its link to a variety of chronic diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and even allergies. Longevity experts even see reducing chronic inflammation as key to healthier aging. 'It's a classic double-edged sword,' said Dr. David Hafler, a neurologist and professor of immunobiology at Yale School of Medicine. Inflammation is necessary for survival, and without it our bodies wouldn't be able to fight off intruders like viruses and bacteria. A sore throat, for example, turns red and is painful because the immune system is fighting the infection to prevent it from spreading, which doctors call acute inflammation, said Dr. Moshe Arditi, a pediatrician and director of the infectious and immunological diseases research center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. 'Localized immune response in the acute stage — to a limited extent — is all beneficial inflammation,' he said. The discovery of inflammation dates back centuries to the Roman encyclopedist Aulus Cornelius Celcus, one of the first people to define it. Celcus described the core signs of inflammation in Latin as rubor, tumor, calore, delore. The terms translate to redness, swelling, heat and pain, which still hold true. At a microscopic level, acute inflammation includes our bodies' sending fluid, proteins and white blood cells to the sites of infections or injuries, which help fight foreign pathogens and promote healing. While inflammation can be lifesaving in the short term, there is another type of inflammation, chronic inflammation, that can damage the body over the long term. What causes chronic inflammation? Several risk factors make your body more likely to have chronic inflammation — including obesity, which promotes a low-level inflammatory state throughout the body, tobacco smoking and diet. Dr. Thaddeus Stappenbeck, chair of inflammation and immunity at the Cleveland Clinic, suspects the modern American diet is a major source of chronic inflammation. Processed foods, refined sugars, trans fats and excessive consumption of red meat are associated with increased inflammation. The Food and Drug Administration banned t rans fats in 2015, and they were finally removed from snacks, bread, cookies and other baked goods in 2018. 'I suspect that there's more people with underlying, chronic inflammation than there were in the past,' Stappenbeck said. 'I think about the way we've shifted our diet where we eat a lot of chemicals that we are not adapted to consume, and these have a number of effects on our intestines.' Shmerling said, 'Lack of exercise, lack of sleep, too much stress, all of those are lifestyle factors associated that are pro-inflammatory.' What are symptoms of inflammation? Signs may vary, but they include: Joint pain that doesn't improve. Fatigue. Constipation Depression. Weight loss, regular exercise and avoiding highly processed foods can reduce levels of inflammation in the body, Shmerling said. Studies have suggested that following a Mediterranean diet, largely plant-based with an emphasis on whole fruits and vegetables, can reduce levels of inflammation. 'It's often not an on/off kind of switch,' he said. 'We don't have perfect ways to measure inflammation after making a lifestyle modification, but inflammatory markers can improve with lifestyle changes.' How chronic inflammation affects the heart An estimated 129 million people in the United States have at least one chronic disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The prevalence of chronic disease has grown by about 7 million people every five years, according to estimates from Stanford University. The causes of chronic disease are complicated, but experts are increasingly convinced that inflammation is playing a role. 'There's a fair amount of consensus that a lot of the chronic diseases we see now in higher prevalence than in the past could well be related to chronic inflammation,' Shmerling said. What comes first — the inflammation or the disease? When the body is in an inflammatory state, it can start to destroy the very things it needs to function, such as our vital organs and blood vessels. 'Ongoing inflammation may lead to heart disease and building of plaque in the blood vessels, which can lead to heart attack and strokes," said Arditi, of Cedars-Sinai. 'Long-term inflammation in your brain may lead to development of neurodegenerative diseases by damaging neurons and interfering with normal brain function.' Autoimmune disorders like lupus or multiple sclerosis are also linked to chronic inflammation as the immune system starts to attack various parts of the body in friendly fire. 'The body is not distinguishing properly between itself and an outside intruder or a pathogen,' Shmerling said. 'There's chronic inflammation that's ongoing and quite damaging.' Diseases including Parkinson's and even diabetes all have inflammatory components to them, Stappenbeck said. Because of inflammation's close relationship to a host of diseases, he's not surprised by patients coming in asking to be checked for it. 'I think there's a desire from patients to say, 'Can you actually detect this in me earlier, before I get super sick?'' he said. Is there a test for chronic inflammation? There are blood tests for inflammation, but they aren't perfect. They don't provide clear answers about where the inflammation may be lurking in the body. There can also be false positives. That's why experts say the tests must be interpreted along with symptoms. One of the most common tests is called the erythrocyte sedimentation rate, a blood test that measures the level of certain proteins that correlate with the amount of inflammation in the body. Another test assesses c-reactive protein (CRP), a protein the liver produces in response to inflammation. Because of the limitations, Shmerling doesn't recommend that healthy people with no symptoms be routinely screened for inflammation. 'There can be normal inflammation tests even when inflammation is present, and sometimes the tests are abnormal even when it doesn't seem there is any inflammation present,' he said. 'So they're not perfect.' Stappenbeck agreed. 'I don't think there's much of a role for it, actually,' he said. There is some potential for a test called hs-CRP, a more sensitive test that can find smaller increases in c-reactive protein in the blood. High levels of that protein in the blood have been linked to heart attacks and strokes. Some argue that this test should be done routinely, just like checking cholesterol, to determine who is more at risk of heart attacks and stroke. The evidence, however, has been mixed, which is why the test isn't widely performed. 'There are people who are so low-risk or so high-risk that it's very unlikely the CRP is going to help you,' Shmerling said. 'There are subsets of people, maybe at moderate risk, where a CRP for cardiac risk could be helpful.'
