Prevalence of Measles Antibodies in Medical Students in Bushehr

Abstract

Background: Measles is one of the most highly communicable of all infectious diseases in healthcare settings, and may transmit to medical personnel. This study was designed to assess measles immunity in a group of healthcare workers (medical students) and its relationship with age, sex and duration of working in hospital. Material and Methods: All medical students of the clinical courses were informed of the study in spring and summer of 2016. After collecting demographic information, 5 ml of blood was drawn from each student. Serum level of measles IgG was measured using IBL-America enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays kits in the laboratory of the Persian Gulf Research Center for Infectious Diseases. Results: A total of 90 students with a mean age of 25±3.2 years were included. All students had a history of one shot of measles vaccination. The positivity rate of measles antibody was found 48.9% (44 cases) while 12.2% (11 cases) had borderline titers and 35 (38.9%) were reported negative. No relationship was observed between positivity of measles antibody and the variables of age, sex and duration of working in hospital. Conclusion: This study demonstrates more than one-third of medical students were at risk of measles, which mandates periodic surveillance and revaccination of susceptible healthcare workers. Furthermore, adequate respiratory precautions should be taken when visiting patients with febrile exanthema and cough