PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt This is a really important PSA! When I was getting ready to go to college in the late '80s they were systematically requiring a re-up of the measles vaccination due to the exact concern you mention. As a know it all teenager at the time, I was annoyed. But in the last several years, I've been grateful for that proactive requirement - made by the US Naval Hospital in Bethesda MD, which has since been merged with Walther Reed Army Medical Center.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
At least in some pharmacies, you can get the MMR set as a booster if you're a certain age without having to get tested for it. It's now well known that the immunity wanes slowly over time, as well as the early versions of the measles vaccine being less effective than later ones.
I'm 65 and was able to get it this year without any testing required. It's probably a good idea for anyone this age.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt I am in my 50s and last year I got the Shingles vaccine. Does this overlap? Or should I also get tested for measles immunity?
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
The test isn't reliable in previously (even if inadequately) vaccinated individuals. If it does show immunity, that is probably correct. But if it doesn't show immunity, the interpretation is unclear.
Based on this, advice to anyone who isn't sure if they were vaccinated or might have received a less effective vaccine:
Don't bother with the test.
Just get (re-)vaccinated. It's simpler.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt Last annual physical, I asked my doc if I need a boost, and she said, "no." I'm over 60; time for the jab! I have the latest COVID and flu boosters on board.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
I am a few years older. The long-term efficacy of the MMR vaccine i probably received in childhood was later questioned.
So i signed up for another one last autumn. Partly due to the recent explosion of US measles cases and partly out of concern that the current administration might decide to ban the vaccine altogether.
Told the pharmacist i didn't know what MMR i originally received. He said it didn't matter because by this point i would need a booster regardless.
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@overholt This is really interesting. I'm wondering if anyone who's replied is in the UK? We can't just request vaccines on the NHS, for example I wasn't eligible for a free flu jab this year, but this is something I could look into getting done privately, esp as I have a health plan through work instead of a pay rise
I'm in the UK, like you, and also in the demographic where the measles vaccine we received may have been sub-optimal.
If you plan to travel to the US or developing countries where measles may be circulating, then yeah, it's probably worth getting an MMR even if you have to pay for it.
If you're not planning on travelling outside western Europe then don't bother. You are protected by herd immunity and won't encounter measles
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt The bad news is that I never got MMR vaccines as a child because I actually got the diseases before there were vaccines. The good news is they didn't kill me. The other good news is I had titers done and my immunity is still strong.
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@overholt I am in my 50s and last year I got the Shingles vaccine. Does this overlap? Or should I also get tested for measles immunity?
@geolaw Different things to my understanding. I got the shingles vaccine before my measles immunity test.
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@donaldball @overholt @blogdiva For what it's worth, I was able to go into the pharmacy in California and get a booster no Dr rx or test needed. Not sure if that's still possible though. *From my perspective* getting another booster was worth it. Many of us 50+ers didn't ever have the measles nor did we get two doses of the vaccine.
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@overholt I also got tested recently and found I had no immunity - either a booster or first time, we're protecting ourselves as well as others. I saw recently that Massachusetts has fallen below the herd immunity level for measles.
@CuriousMagpie @overholt
I *also* had to get the full MMR series a second time, because my titres showed no immunity. This is so important! -
PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt Slightly younger than you (50) and also got tested and was still immune. Boosted so people can get boosted.
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@overholt I got tested at 35 and had no immunity anymore! FYI no one warned me about fever and general crud one week into vaccine application.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
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@geolaw Different things to my understanding. I got the shingles vaccine before my measles immunity test.
Had shingles last year. Definitely recommend getting vaccinated against it.
I suppose it will be less of a problem for younger generations who got vaccinated against chickenpox in the first place?
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt I caught the measles in Senegal in 1984 when I was a 20-something Peace Corps volunteer, presumably because I received an ineffective vaccine in childhood. It was the sickest I’ve ever been—high fever, double vision, and it left me with a permanent heart arrhythmia. After being bedridden for 2 weeks, I was out of breath from walking short distances and it took months for me to regain my strength. You don’t want the measles.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
I'm a young-ish Gen-Xer and found the same last year when I asked my doc for titer tests on a hunch. I wanted to make sure I could get fully vaccinated before RFK Jr. screwed things up too much.
The reason this is an issue is that up until roughly the 1990s, the childhood MMR vaccine in the US was a single dose. That seemed to be fine, but an outbreak in 1989 revealed that the single dose was inadequate. They subsequently changed the protocol to two doses for children, but never urged older generations to go back for a booster. This hadn't been a serious issue until recently, when coddling of anti-vaxxers destroyed herd immunity and created the conditions for the regional outbreaks we're dealing with now.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt I'm a little bit older and recently got an MMR shot/booster.
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PSA: I’m turning 55 next month, and there’s an issue with people who got vaccinated for measles around the same time I did as a kid having waning immunity. I got tested and it turned out I had no immunity, so I got revaccinated this week. Don’t listen to the science deniers: measles is not a trivial disease if you’re 5 or 55 and we can no longer rely on herd immunity.
@overholt I couldn’t find my childhood vax record when I went back to school at 50 and a titer showed I had immunity to measles and rubella, but not mumps. Got a booster MMR. Also Prevnar for pneumonia.
