Rubella (German Measles)

Rubella (German Measles) is a contagious illness caused by the RuV Virus, which is common in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. This virus is transmitted from one person to another through coughing, sneezing, or surfaces infected by the virus. Rubella is usually a mild condition that gets better in ~3 days with treatment and 7-10 days without treatment. It usually manifests by having a red-pink skin rash made up of small spots, which generally starts from the face down to the rest of the body with low fever, coughing, sore throat, runny nose, pink eye, joint pain, headache, and swollen lymph nodes.

However, not all have clinical manifestations when infected by the virus, but this can still spread through direct contact with the mucosal discharge of the infected person. This poses a high risk to pregnant women, which happens when the mother in gestation contracts rubella from an infected person and, in turn, will pass rubella to the fetus, which can cause skin, hearing, vision, heart, and brain impairment in newborns. The best way to treat rubella is by preventing the contraction of the virus, which includes washing your hands frequently, not sharing personal items like straws, covering the mouth and nose when coughing, and being adequately informed of the prevalence of the disease in the area if you are traveling.