Rubella - immunise now for future protection
BY
HELEN
POCKNAL,
, PHN
Rubella (or german measles) is an infectious disease. If you get it you might have a pink skin rash, swollen glands in your neck and perhaps a temperature.
You might just feel generally off-colour for a few days. You might not notice anything at all. It commonly affects young children and young adults and is not much to worry about. However, rubella can be very serious for women who are having a baby. If a pregnant woman catches it, it can harm the baby. The baby may be born with a damaged brain, eyes, hearing or heart. Women need to make sure they won't get rubella during pregnancy by being immunized against it long before they get preg-
nant. If girls have the injection when they are quite young then they don't need to worry about rubella when they are ready to have a family. In N.Z. free immunization against rubella is offered to all girls in Form 1. This week the girls in our local schools in the Waimarino will receive theirs. The injection is given at school by the public health nurse. Parents can, if they wish, ask their family doctor to give the injection instead. The immunization is safe and effective.. It is not painful and even if
a girl has had rubella it is still advisable for her to have the injection, to be sure she is protected.For older girls and women who might not have had the injection all you need to do is to see your doctor and ask him to arrange a blood test. This will show whether or not you are already immune. Then if you are not, your doctor can arrange for you to have the immunization. If there is any chance that you could become pregnant now or in the future, protect yourself by having your rubella immunization now. You must not get pregnant until at least three months after the injection, so you need to plan ahead. Any woman who is pregnant and thinks she may have been around someone with rubella should talk to her doctor straight away.
Helen
Pocknall
Public Health Nurse
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Bibliographic details
Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 7, Issue 339, 12 June 1990, Page 8
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365Rubella - immunise now for future protection Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 7, Issue 339, 12 June 1990, Page 8
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