I am reading, with great dismay, many of the articles regarding childhood immunization against measles and the myriad diseases that we have discovered defenses against. What I’m missing in what’s been written (although I may have missed a few) is the discussion about how these viruses and other organisms mutate over time if they are allowed to proliferate in the population. This is one of the reasons that we have the deadly methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections that everyone who enters a hospital is afraid of contracting.
Another example being the influenza virus, which periodically mutates into new strains that we can’t begin to develop vaccines against in time for the next flu season.
But here we have a vaccine against measles that works, and yet if it is allowed to proliferate, the entire population, including those who have been vaccinated, could potentially be in danger of contracting a new strain.
I believe the only answer is a concerted public health education campaign by the American Medical Association that people might take to heart and eventually make the right choice. This is truly a public health issue — that means you and me in addition to those who feel it is their choice.
