Rubella virus

Title of the article: "Rubella virus - infection control and prevention"

In recent years, the world has seen an increase in the incidence of rubella, which is caused by a virus from the Togaviridae family. This virus can affect not only children, but also adults, making it a serious health threat. The rubella virus is spread through the air and can be highly contagious, especially to people who are not immune to the virus. Children and young people under thirty years of age are most often affected. Symptoms of rubella may include fever, headache, cough, muscle and joint pain, and small red spots on the skin that become brighter and raised over time. Treatment of infection consists of taking antiviral drugs and symptomatic treatment. Compliance with preventive measures, such as rubella vaccination, is also an important factor. However, despite the availability of vaccines and control of the epidemic, the virus still persists and it is important to continue to work to combat it.



An infectious disease caused by viruses from the togavirus family

Rubella virus is a virus belonging to the Togavirus family, genus Rubivirus. It is one of the most common viruses that causes illness in humans. It spreads through respiratory droplets, which means the air may contain virus germs. The most common symptom of infection is a rash on the body.

Description

The disease occurs as a widespread quarantine disease. The main source of infection are sick people with a developed or erased clinical picture - they are a potential source of spread of the pathogen. The source of infection can also be a convalescent person who releases the virus into the external environment for up to 2 months. The incubation period ranges from 7 to 30 days. At the end of the incubation period, the sick person becomes infectious to others. The disease manifests itself as mild catarrhal symptoms in the nasopharynx and usually occurs as short-term general toxicosis and rash. The duration from the onset of the disease to clinical remission is usually 14–15 days, but does not exclude a possible relapse. The development of the chronic form is facilitated by repeated infection with rubella complex viruses. Chronic carriers of the virus do not get rubella; this is due to a high titer of autoantibodies. Carriers without symptoms of the disease pose an epidemiological danger. In children and young women, a much more severe disease is observed - primary tonsillitis, accompanied by fever, swelling of the tonsils, and intense pain in the throat when swallowing. Infants suffer from the disease with difficulty; croup syndrome and laryngitis are noted. These children often experience the disease 2–3 times. According to the course, the disease in adults is divided into mild, typical moderate and severe. The severity of symptoms is somewhat weakened in pregnant women, especially after 36 weeks of pregnancy. The disease is often combined with measles and herpes, especially in newborns. The consequences of rubella include minimal ones, which quickly disappear, and those leading to life-threatening consequences, such as an increase in the number of lymphocytes, endocarditis, heart disease, hepatitis, lymphadenitis, pneumonia, infectious-toxic shock. Differential diagnosis is carried out with enterovirus infection, meningococcemia, mumps, diphtheria. Rubella must be distinguished from mumps, in which there is symmetrical damage to the salivary glands, especially the parotid glands, and the mucous membranes of the oral cavity. The virological method for rubella is considered the main one. Serological studies are carried out - heterogeaulatory agglutinins are detected, which then quickly disappear. In the toxic form, it is easier to diagnose the disease. Characteristic pink areas up to 5 mm in size can be identified on the mucous membrane of the throat. The temperature also decreases and severe weakness appears. Enlarged lymph nodes are one of the characteristic diagnostic signs. Neutrophilic leukocytosis and normocytic anemia are observed in the blood; the platelet count remains



Rubella virus

The virus is from the genus Rubivirus and belongs to the family Togaviridae. The viral disease, also known as German measles, is found almost everywhere. Mostly teenagers and adults suffer from it, and children under one month of age also get sick; this is the safest age for the disease. The disease is characterized by a polymorphism of manifestations up to an abortive course. There is a so-called latent infection - according to tests, IgM is detected in a person, but there are no clinical manifestations or they are insignificant. Treatment is immunocorrective, symptomatic and restorative.

Diagnosis requires differentiation from measles, false measles, pseudorubella, and mumps. When breastfeeding, symptoms can often be combined in the mother with visceritis