Americas region is declared the world’s first to eliminate rubella

Historic achievement follows similar "firsts" against smallpox in 1971 and polio in 1994

 

A rash of rubella on the skin of child's back is shown in a 1978 handout photo. Distribution is similar to that of measles, but the lesions are less intensely red.-Vancouver Sun‎

Wednesday, 29 April 2015

Washington, D.C., 29 April 2015 (PAHO/WHO) — The Americas region has become the first in the world to be declared free of endemic transmission of rubella, a contagious viral disease that can cause multiple birth defects as well as fetal death when contracted by women during pregnancy.

Americas Region is Declared the World’s First to Eliminate Rubella by Thavam Ratna