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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 9, 1977)
Ws Mldhood disease can he dangerous Wk THE BATTALION Page 3 FRIDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1977 Rubella cases rise across nation nta By SARAH E. WHITE ffieported cases of rubella (Ger- sm measles), a dangerous disease Inborn children, are up over last tar’s figures and many of the cases is year occurred on college cam ps. Rationally, 19,414 cases of rubella ire reported by Novemenber 26 d format I s y ear F° r the same period of 'reject of last year, 11,492 cases were ported. Jlmost four times as many cases bella were reported this year in is than were reported last year November 5. jtubella is a childhood disease : h Santa' I causes little if any discomfort to Dec, IJ le victim. The symptoms are a rth Santa sb, fever and a headache. These ■ Tickets Moms can be undetectable in ’Us, Kin. Le people or may be diagnosed as Tickets bella when they really result from illergy he danger of rubella is to unborn idren. The virus can cause mal- ations of the fetus if a pregnant len contracts the disease in the three months of pregnancy, he virus “likes” nerve tissue and fit jages the central nervous system v he fetus while it is in its early , L ,, elopment, said Dr. Claude swick, director of Texas A&M iversity’s Beutel Health Center, i pregnant woman could be un- ire having rubella and her child develop many problems. These !ude congenital cataracts, deaf- Itism, mental retardation, heart lease, anemia, hepatitis, diomotor retardation, delayed ech development and deafness. 'tion lation is violence 'ted the 'Quid go oswick said as many as 80 per- : of women who are exposed and tract rubella in their first three nths of pregnancy give birth to Idren with defects. tesearch shows the incidence of il infection in the first trimester jregnancy varies from 47 to 90 cent. iubella can be transmitted very ckly and easily. If an infected jld is walking down the street |ghing and a pregnant woman p need not know she is pregnant) Jses the child, the woman can be osed and can contract rubella. hildren are not the only carriers ubella. Many cases reported this ssumed rwere on college campuses, said simply P 1 Walch, public health adviser ilicanfs phe immunization division of the ■ommit- r as Department of Health. oswick said college campuses J Texas A&M are active areas for j virus because people are close iether in crowded classroonis and who re- tal mur- 'or. The hard D. nanche, ew trial not con- e would ire tarings mses to Dlower, ngb bling a ;ay the Steven ywood •ed his n y out riling vhich con- Gulf ector rt he :nch- from nzoil buildings. He said he has seen a handful of rubella cases this calen dar year. He added that he expected more of an epidemic because the disease passes so quickly. Some stu dents with rubella may not have noticed the symptoms, had the symptoms or gone to the health cen ter for treatment. Although Goswick said the risks of rubella outbreaks and possible fetal infection can warrant a mass immunization program for students, financial and legal problems surface quickly. The vaccine costs money and the program must be financed. Because it is limited, state money is restricted to funding the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella for the susceptible 15-month through 5-year-old children. State supplied rubella vaccine cannot be given to person over 12 years. The health center also encounters legal problems with the mass im munizations of women in the child bearing age. The vaccination gives the person a case of rubella. Therefore, if a woman in the child-bearing age group is vaccinated, and pregnant, the child can be born deformed. Usually a woman in that age group must sign a release for the adminis tering agency saying that she is not pregnant and will not get pregnant for three months following the im munization. This precaution is taken because it is not known what dam age the vaccine may have on the fetus. Mass immunization of men has no legal complications because men cannot be adversely affected by the vaccine. Immunizing men would prevent the disease being carried to pregnant women. However, financ ing the program is still a problem and Goswick said students are not usually responsive to mass immuni zation campaigns. Goswick said he encourages men to go ahead and have the disease rather than pay the cost of the vac cination. Alternative solutions included immunizing school children and blood titer (HI) examinations for women in the child-bearing age group. State law requires all elementary school children be immunized against rubella. Bryan schools allow new students two weeks to get rubella immuniza tions after their arrival. The schools’ immunizations records are not com plete at this time. The school nurse ES helps people ight fuel cost c na- :s he at a egel, n no i the ittee By MARGIE KOVAR iVhen contact with the masses s, try to reach the individuals. Phis is the strategy used by the vly organized Texas Energy Ex- ision Service (EES) to help ople fight high fuel use and ts. We are trying to reach specific >ups rather than large groups of ople and are urging them to serve energy, ” said Dr. iphen Riter, director of the tewide program with headquar- s on the Texas A&M University npus. Area offices are located in San tonio, El Paso, Arlington, Hous- ) and Lubbock and are designed work with specific groups. One ogram is being carried out at lirie View A&M and is designed reach people with limited re- urces. < Incredible percentages of these ople’s budgets go to energy bills heating and transportation,” d Riter. “Therefore, they have — without other things. We are using their peers to teach them to save fuel and lower their bills by doing such things as fixing broken windows and using wood for heating fuel. “After all, about 18 percent of the state’s population is below the poverty level.” Offices in El Paso, San Antonio and Arlingotn are run by the Uni versity of Texas System. The Lub bock office is under the direction of the Texas Agricultural Extension Service. The University of Hous ton runs the Houston office and has geared its program toward hospitals. “This extension service is a pilot program,” said Larry Perrine, manager of the main office at Texas A&M. “After two years there will be an evaluation to see how the program is working.” Pamphlets have been printed for each of the groups with advice on fuel conservation in such areas as building construction, insulation and solar energy use. The EES is one of 10 state pro grams funded by a $1.1 million federal grant. refused to comment. Diane Chester, A&M Consoli dated Middle School nurse, said with the exception of new students moving into the area, all elementary and middle school students are im munized against rubella. She explained that the school usually allows new students 10 days to get the vaccination. Many times they must wait for the child’s im munization records to arrive from the previous school. If they have not complied by this time, the school sends a final notice and turns the problem over to the school principal who will call the parents and give them time to comply. Finally the child is removed from school until the parents comply. Chester said the A&M schools are above the 90 percentile ranking in all immunization. The blood test is the alternative to mass immunization of women in the child-bearing age group. This test determines whether the woman has antibodies to rubella or not. If she has antibodies she does not need the vaccination; if she does not have an tibodies, she should be immunized immediately. If, however, she is pregnant and has been exposed to rubella, abortion is legal because the baby may be born with a defect. The health center will give titers, but the student pays the $9 cost. winds jpp® r iance IWXhdlbX WX **tt*HV*tf tty ****** PACK’S PLASTER AND CERAMICS One of the largest selections of plaster in Texas. Art supplies, ornamental concrete and candles. Tues., Wed., Thurs. 2 p.m.-9 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday 2 p.m.-5 p.m. FM 2223, Old Wheelock Road (off Tabor Road) 823-3965 Offer good thru Dec. 15, 1977 Come see us before , Christmas! Ill Boyett St. /Nf-xt to Campus Theatre) The Texas Department of Health began a rubella screening program in August which consists of titer tests for women aged 18 to 30. In some cases younger females are tested. Though scheduled to end in October, the tests are being con tinued because of the 5,000 allotted tests, only 1,087 were filled by the end of October. Hopefully, 90 percent of the women will have an antibody against rubella, Walch said. If there are less, the department will proba bly make a recommendation for fur ther rubella screening, he said. The Brazos County health units was allotted 200 titer tests which they give free. A spokesman for the unit said they are nearing the 200 mark now. They only give the test to females who know they have not had the shot. Rubella will never be handled with an epidemic approach, Walch says. A Texas State Department of Health pamphlet reports the last major rubella epidemic occurred in 1964. Thirty thousand miscarriages or stillbirths and 20,000 children were born with defects as a result. The pamphlet estimates that it will cost over $3 billion dollars to take care of and educate these children until they are 18 years old. They’re Here! From Germany i? Europe: • Christmas Ornaments • Nutcrackers • Pyramids • The famous Effanbee dolls (since 1910) & other collector dolls • and other gifts from all over the world Happy Cottage facross from Luby’s) mf'pi for that j • i someone special..« Santa says, "A gift certificate for a new hair style, with one of our professionals, a facial with Lucia Adams or a make-up session with Debi Bavousett will please him or her this Christmas season/' Hair Design for Men & Women cllji|p/ LOBBY OF THE AGGEELAND INN if