A single case of the mumps in a Gilbert school means 19 unvaccinated children have been removed from their classes for nearly a month, the Maricopa County Department of Public Health announced this week.
In Arizona, schools cannot turn away children who do not have their vaccines. But their parents or guardians are required to file an exemption that - at present time - must be signed by the responsible adult. When they take that action, they risk being pulled out of school when a rare, highly contagious disease - like mumps - appears, said Dr. Bob England, director of the county's health department.
In the case at Higley Elementary School, the unvaccinated children will miss 26 days of school, as long as there is not another mumps case reported. If there is, that 26-day-period could start all over, England said.
"We hate to do this. I hate to kick kids out of school. School is important," England said. "But every time a parent signs an exemption and chooses not to vaccinate their child, they've got to know this is possible."
The county health department sent home a note with parents informing them of the mumps case in a fourth-grader at the school. Mumps causes swelling in the salivary glands, loss of appetite and fatigue. It can be contracted through contact with body fluid from the mouth, nose or throat, such as through sneezing or coughing. It is a virus that may be treated with viral antibiotics.
Since 2001, there have only been 19 reported cases of mumps in Maricopa County. Most children are vaccinated against the disease, with a dose given between 12 months and 15 months as part of the MMR shot (measles, mumps and rubella) and a second dose given between 4 and 6 years old, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Adults born prior to 1957 are likely immune to the disease because it was so prevalent, England said. But younger adults who only have had one dose of the vaccine may be at risk.
Vaccine exemptions are not the norm in most Maricopa County schools. But how many families have those exemptions - for personal or religious reasons - differs among campuses.
A recent report by the state Department of Health Services shows schools in Maricopa County vary widely on the number of kindergarten students who were in compliance for the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine when they started classes in August 2010. In most cases, more than 98 percent of the students in each of the 630 schools are in compliance, according to the data. A number of schools have students 100 percent in compliance.
But in some cases, that figure plummets to 73 percent. At least one school - a private Phoenix campus - was at 52 percent.
England said this presents problems not only for the children not vaccinated, but for their classmates.
"It matters whether people around you have been vaccinated. It matters at least as much as it matters whether you've been vaccinated. No vaccine is perfect. Even people who have been vaccinated can contract diseases if they're exposed to them. The key is to never be exposed," England said. "That's how we've made all those previously common childhood diseases so rare. It's not that the vaccine is so perfect. It's that you get enough people vaccinated that when one person comes in with a disease that germ has a hard time finding another person to jump to."
England calls it the "herd" effect.
But for many reasons, including medical ones, some parents choose not to vaccinate. Some cite religions or personal preference. Some cite concerns about vaccines themselves.
Parents who do choose to file an exemption may have an extra step in the process in the future.
Rep. Cecil Ash, R-Mesa, is proposing a law that would require a health professional's signature on the exemption forms, as well as the parents. HB 2846 would also require that parents get the exemption form signed by a health provider annually.
Dr. David M Curran, MD, chairman of the department of pediatric medicine at Cardon Children's Medical Center in Mesa, said the bill would not impact doctors a great deal.
"We already do everything the bill proposes. In 2002, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended all family pediatricians and family practitioners that give vaccines document the family refusals to vaccinate," Curran said. "The idea behind that form is to demonstrate the importance we as pediatricians place upon vaccines."
Curran said health providers talk to the families about the risks, as well. To put it into focus, Curran pointed to the current measles outbreak in Indiana.
Indiana health authorities have reported 10 confirmed cases of the measles in the last week. The index case - the first person identified as having the disease - attended activities at the Super Bowl village in Indianapolis a few days before the game.
According to news reports, all the cases have been found in unvaccinated adults.
Measles is a contagious respiratory disease that, like mumps, is spread through coughing and sneezing and other contact with body fluid from the mouth, nose and throat.
In most years, the United States sees fewer than 50 cases of the disease, according to the CDC website.
Contact writer: (480) 898-6549 or mreese@evtrib.com
samkat posted at 5:51 pm on Tue, Feb 14, 2012.
Its time to quit being politically correct and return to requiring mandatory vaccinations before enrollment.
vicky posted at 2:43 pm on Wed, Feb 15, 2012.
There should never be mandatory vaccination! Mumps is not a dangerous disease like they would like to believe. Better sanitation has made it easier for it to me kept at bay. Most people think vaccination is the answer. Did you know that after you are vaccinated you can infect otherwise healthy or sick people because of shedding the disease? Mumps does not cause sterility like they would have you believe. Sometimes Orchitis can arise and this sometimes will cause sterility, but many times if at all it will only cause damage to one testes. So this is another lie that they are trying to make you believe.
abimopectore posted at 7:42 pm on Fri, Feb 17, 2012.
It's comments like vicky's above why mumps and other diseases have made a local resurgence. Any disease that can be avoided should be avoided especially if it's INFECTIOUS. This type of thinking ignores the good that these vaccines have done for humanity and attempts at conjuring non-proven details or highly improbable situations (i.e., if you look at the available studies and take a good statistics course you'd realize the improbability of what's been stated above). The fact is that vaccines have provided a herd protection that has been diminished by the folks who are failing to vaccinate their children. People need to start using their heads because it's only a matter of time before something worse happens because of this type of thinking.
SteveMan posted at 9:56 pm on Fri, Feb 17, 2012.
Ok, abimopectore you plan is flawed. 1st. There will never be forced vaccination in this Country, because last time I checked it was Communism. We live in America, not England. 2nd. You do realize that an actual Vaccine can cause an actual "outbreak" right (everytime someone is vaccinated it is exposing others)? Because It can, yup that is one of the side effects... So this boy could have just got that shot and exposed everyone one else to it. ... Also, are you aware that there is a governement run program called The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. For vaccine injured children, shocking right. Well it is true my friend. My sister suffered from a auto-immune disorder from this vaccine, so some people have the right to determine if this is worth the risks. She has to deal with the auto-immune disorder for the rest of her life, so maybe just getting the Mumps would have been a better option for her.
wdgnas posted at 8:08 am on Sat, Feb 18, 2012.
how many days of school does a child have to miss without going on to the next grade level?
abimopectore posted at 1:34 pm on Sat, Feb 18, 2012.
SteveMan,
I didn't state that I believe in forced vaccinations. I was stating that the attitude demonstrated by the previous comment has created a fear of vaccines when a fear of disease should be what drives folks to "voluntarily" want to vaccinate against those "infectious" diseases that pose a greater threat to the common "public" health.
Secondly, that a vaccine can cause an actual "outbreak" is NOT supported by the current literature and mostly likely an improbable event and not likely as you're hysterically claiming. Where is your supporting evidence?
I'm also aware of the the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program and it is unfortunate when certain incidents occur but they are far and FEW unlike you're claiming. The good that has come with vaccinations programs throughout our history is undisputed. It's historical and there are prevailing facts that support this conclusion since we've been able to minimize and even eliminate in many parts of our country and in the world the impact of these infectious diseases. You can choose to ignore this reality but this will only serve to reflect your ignorance about what's truly happening. I'm am sorry your sister has suffered from her condition but this in no way denies or disputes the reality of the good that vaccines have done for this country and the world.
Valley Mom posted at 2:26 pm on Sun, Feb 19, 2012.
But what your comment DID say abimopectore is misleading. There is only 50 or less cases in the entire COUNTRY of mumps. The only reason 19 were removed is because of ONE child getting it. Not 19. So absolutely not, I would never agree to mandatory vaccinations.
Yes, it is supported that vaccinations can and do cause the very illness that they are supposed to inoculate against. You can do your own research - I have done mine.
Vaccinations may have started with good intentions in mind. Now, they are little more than the cash cow for the wealthiest companies on the planet - the pharmaceuticals. Or is that your reflections of your ignorance on this very convoluted conversation?
k33j88 posted at 12:40 am on Mon, Feb 20, 2012.
I'd be more inclined to home school or send a child to a private institution. Indoctrinating young, impressionable minds to the "virtues" of liberalism, is a far worse matter. How about the adjuvants that are supposedly benign? Let us not toss aside the realization that a miniscule "live virus" is also included. Anyways, there is no law requiring all those "necessary shots". Remember small pox parties? A healthy, human body is virtually indestructable. Unless, of course, monsato feeds your child.
abimopectore posted at 12:04 pm on Mon, Feb 20, 2012.
Valley Mom,
I'm not advocating "mandatory" vaccines. As I stated previously, one would hope to examine all the issues in order to come to an appropriate decision for yourself and your loved ones. But to advocate what is not scientifically verifiable is disingenuous on your part and downright not based on any provable science. To each their own, and you obviously will do what you think is right. But to make the claims you've made is almost beyond the pale of any serious scientific opinion.