Rubella

What Is Rubella?

Rubella is a contagious disease that mostly affects children. It causes symptoms like a rash, fever, and eye redness. It’s usually mild in kids, but it can be serious in pregnant women. You may also hear rubella called the “German measles” or the “three-day measles.”

The best way to protect yourself and your children from infection is to get vaccinated with the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.

Symptoms of Rubella

Rubella is usually mild in children. Sometimes it doesn't cause any symptoms.

A pink or red-spotted rash is often the first sign of infection. It starts on the face and spreads to the rest of the body. The rash lasts about 3 days. This is why rubella is sometimes called the "3-day measles."

Along with the rash, you or your child might have:

• A mild fever -- from 99 F to 100 F
• Swollen and pink-colored eyes (conjunctivitis)
• Headache
• Swollen glands behind the ears and on the neck
• Stuffy, runny nose
• Cough
• Sore joints (more common in young women)
• General discomfort
• Lymph nodes may be swollen and enlarged

Causes of Rubella

Rubella is caused by a virus. It used to be called "German measles," though it’s not caused by the same virus that causes measles.

Transmission of Rubella

Rubella spreads when someone who is infected coughs or sneezes tiny germ- filled droplets into the air and onto surfaces. People who catch the virus are contagious for up to a week before and a week after the rash appears.

Some people don't know they're infected because they don't have symptoms, but they can still pass the virus to others. If you’ve been diagnosed with rubella, tell the people who’ve been around you, especially any pregnant women.

Rubella Risk Factors

Until the 1960s, rubella was a common childhood infection. Thanks to the MMR vaccine, the virus stopped spreading in the United States around 2004. Yet it still spreads in Asia, Africa, and other parts of the world. People from these areas sometimes bring the rubella virus to the United States when they travel.

Anyone can catch rubella if they're exposed to the virus and haven't been vaccinated. Pregnant women face serious risks because rubella can cause serious complications to the baby during pregnancy.

Complications of Rubella

The most serious of these could happen during pregnancy, when the virus can pass from mother to baby in the womb. The risk is highest during the first 3 months of pregnancy.

Babies who are infected can have serious birth defects called congenital rubella syndrome (CRS). This is very rare in the United States, but a baby can get it if they travel to another country where the virus spreads.

CRS is a group of health problems in a baby that can include:

• Heart defects
• Cataracts
• Deafness
• Delayed learning
• Liver and spleen damage
• Diabetes
• Thyroid problems

Some women who get rubella during pregnancy have a miscarriage. In other cases, the baby doesn't survive long after birth. It’s best to get vaccinated against rubella before you get pregnant to protect your baby. You should wait at least 4 weeks after getting the vaccine to become pregnant. If you’re already pregnant, you shouldn’t get the vaccine.

Rubella can also cause complications in women who aren't pregnant, and in men. Young girls and women who get it can develop sore joints (arthritis). This side effect usually goes away within 2 weeks, but a small number of women will have it long term. It rarely happens in men and children.

In rare cases, rubella can cause more serious health problems, like brain infections or swelling and bleeding problems.

Rubella Prevention

The best way is to get vaccinated. Children need two doses of the MMR vaccine. They should get the first when they’re between 12 and 15 months old. They should get the second between 4 and 6 years old.

Babies who’ll be traveling to a country where rubella is common can get vaccinated as early as 6 months old.

If you're a woman of childbearing age and you haven't been vaccinated, get the MMR vaccine at least 1 month before you get pregnant. This is most important if you plan to travel to countries where rubella spreads.

Rubella Diagnosis

If your doctor thinks you have rubella, you may get blood tests and a virus culture to confirm that. The virus culture comes from a throat or nasal swab or from a urine sample.

Rubella Treatment

It’s a virus, so antibiotics won’t work.

Most of the time, the infection in children is so mild, it doesn't need to be treated. You can bring down your child's fever and ease aches with pain relievers like children's acetaminophen or ibuprofen. Don't give your child or teen aspirin because of the risk for a rare but serious condition called Reye's syndrome.

If you’re pregnant and think you’ve caught rubella, call your doctor right away. You may be able to take antibodies called hyperimmune globulin to help your body fight the virus.

As for home remedies for rubella, there aren’t any that make the virus go away faster. But rest and pain relievers can help with self-care in mild cases, if needed.

Read more on: a to z guides