Hostname: page-component-77c89778f8-cnmwb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-17T15:18:12.202Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Measles Immunity Among Community Hospital Employees

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 June 2016

Peter Houck ,
Gay Scott-Johnson  and
Lylanne Krebs
Peter Houck*
Affiliation:
Division of Field Epidemiology, Epidemiology Program Office, Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia
Gay Scott-Johnson
Affiliation:
Infection Control Department, Yakima Valley Memomorial Hospital, Yakima, Washington
Lylanne Krebs
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Department, Saint Elizabeth Medical Center, Yakima, Washington
*
Indian Health Service, Room 300, 2201 6th Ave., Seattle, WA 98121
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective:

To define measles immunity rates among employees at 2 hospitals during a community outbreak in 1990.

Design:

Cohort survey using enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA) and questionnaire.

Setting:

Two community hospitals.

Participants:

Seventy-six percent of 2,060 employees.

Results:

Seven percent (115/1566) of participants lacked ELISA-defined measles immunity. Among employees whose ages were known, 14% (64/467) of those born after 1956 and 5% (50/1086) of those born before 1957 lacked serologic evidence of immunity. Fifty-eight percent of the susceptible persons had substantial patient contact. With ELISA results as the reference for immunity, the predictive value of an undocumented positive history of measles disease or vaccination was 95%; the predictive value of a negative history of both was 52%. Measles developed in 7 employees.

Conclusions:

A substantial number of hospital employees lacked ELBA-defined measles immunity, including many who had patient contact or who had been born before 1957. Undocumented disease and vaccination histories were not adequate predictors of serologic status. This study supports the recommendations and suggestions of the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee that hospitals should require documented evidence of measles immunity from employees who have patient contact.

Type
Original Articles
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 12 , Issue 11 , November 1991 , pp. 663 - 668
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 1991

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Centers for Disease Control. Measles prevention: recommendations of the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR. 1989;38(suppl 9):1–18.Google Scholar
2. Centers for Disease Control. Measles-Washington, 1990. MMWR. 1990;39:473–476.Google Scholar
3. Krause, PJ, Cherry, JD, Deseda-Tous, J, et al. Epidemic measles in young adults: clinical, epidemiologic, and serologic studies. Ann Intern Med. 1979;90:873–876.10.7326/0003-4819-90-6-873CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4. Preblud, SR, Gross, F, Halsey, NA, et al. Assessment of susceptibility to measles and rubella. JAMA. 1982;247:1134–1137.10.1001/jama.1982.03320330030021CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
5. Murray, DL, Lynch, MA. Determination of immune status to measles, rubella, and varicella-zoster viruses among medical students: assessment of historical information. Am J Public Health. 1988;78:836–838.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6. Scott, RM, Butler, AB, Schydlower, M, et al. Effectiveness of historical data in predicting measles susceptibility. Pediatrics. 1984;73:777–780.10.1542/peds.73.6.777CrossRefGoogle Scholar
7. Braunstein, H, Thomas, S, Ito, R. Immunity to measles in a large population of varying age. Am J Dis Child. 1990;144:296–298.10.1001/archpedi.1990.02150270046024CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8. Watkins, WM, Smith, RP, St. Germain, DL, MacKay, DN. Measles (rubeola) infection in a hospital setting. Am J Infect Control. 1987;15:201–206.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9. Chou, T, Weil, D, Arnow, PM. Prevalence of measles antibody in hospital personnel. Infect Control. 1986;7:309–311.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10. Albrecht, F! Herrmann, K, Burns, GR. Role of virus strain in conventional and enhanced measles plaque neutralization test. J Virol Methods. 1981;3:251–260.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
11. Cremer, NE, Cossen, CK, Shell, G, et al. Enzyme immunoassay verses plaque neutralization and other methods for determination of immune status to measles and varicella zoster viruses and verses complement fixation for serodiagnosis of infections with those viruses. J Clin Microbial. 1985;21:869–874.10.1128/jcm.21.6.869-874.1985CrossRefGoogle Scholar
12. Mathias, RC, Meekison, WG, Arcand, TA, et al. The role of secondary vaccine failures in measles outbreaks. Am J Public Health. 1989;79:475–478.10.2105/AJPH.79.4.475CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
13. Chen, R, Markowitz, LA Albrecht, P, et al. Measles antibody: reevaluation of protective titers. J Infect Dis. 1990;162:1036–1042.10.1093/infdis/162.5.1036CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14. Neumann, PW, Weber, JM, Jessamine, AG, et al. Comparison of measles antihemolysin test, enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay, and hemagglutination inhibition test with neutralization test for determination of immune status. J Clin Microbiol. 1985;2:296–298.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15. Atkinson, WL, Markowitz, LE, Adams, NC, Seastrom, GR. Transmission of measles in medical settings-United States, 1985-1989. Am J Med. 1991;91(suppl 3B):320S–324S.10.1016/0002-9343(91)90389-FCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
16. Davis, RM, Orenstein, WA, Frank, JA Jr, et al. Transmission of measles in medical settings: 1980 through 1984. JAMA. 1986;255:1295–1298.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed