Hildesheim with its approximately 100,000 inhabitants was for many a long time only a place from which they knew with luck, where he lies. For a few weeks, however, the small town of Lower Saxony is representative of a problem that Germany can not get under control: the measles.
After an outbreak in March, 80 students were not allowed to enter a comprehensive school because they lacked vaccinations against the potentially life-threatening infectious disease. High school graduates missed their written exams. Not least because of this, a debate about compulsory vaccination in Germany flared up. Besides Minister of Health Jens Spahn (CDU), Family Minister Franziska Giffey (SPD) has also called for compulsory syringes.
The discussion gives the impression that Germany is particularly affected by the measles this year. In fact, in 2019, there have been no patients in several federal states. In others, the cases are piling up. By comparison, 2019 has been an above-average year but not an exceptional one. The overview:
In these states, most cases of measles occurred by mid-March
According to the Robert Koch Institute, a total of 236 people have been infected with the measles in Germany by mid-March. Although the cases in Hildesheim attracted much attention, Lower Saxony is not at the top of the most affected states:
- By far the most cases were in North Rhine-Westphalia instead . There, doctors counted up to mid-March 92 measles patients. Even taking into account that NRW has the most inhabitants, relatively more people are infected there than in all other federal states.
- Baden-Württemberg (36 measles cases until mid-March), Lower Saxony (31 measles cases until mid-March) and Bavaria (30 measles cases until mid-March) follow in next places.
The midfield of the list ranges from Hesse (16 cases) to Schleswig-Holstein (one case). In five of the 16 federal states, doctors did not report illness by mid-March: Brandenburg, Bremen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saarland and Saxony-Anhalt.
This does not mean that these federal states are immune from an outbreak. Measles are among the most contagious pathogens. If an infected person comes into contact with a person who is not protected by a vaccine or previous illness, he falls ill with a probability of 95 percent.
Measles Falls 2019 (until 17 March)
| state | Number of reported measles cases |
|---|---|
| North Rhine-Westphalia | 92 |
| Baden-Wurttemberg | 36 |
| Lower Saxony | 31 |
| Bavaria | 30 |
| Hesse | 16 |
| Saxony | 10 |
| Rheinland-Pfalz | 8th |
| Berlin | 7 |
| Hamburg | 3 |
| Thuringia | 2 |
| Schleswig-Holstein | 1 |
| Brandenburg | 0 |
| Bremen | 0 |
| Mecklenburg-Vorpommern | 0 |
| Saarland | 0 |
| Saxony-Anhalt | 0 |
The example of Berlin shows how quickly and selectively measles outbreaks can develop. There physicians documented 2019 so far only seven measles cases. In 2015, the number was already 699 in mid-March - the largest nationwide outbreak in the past ten years.
The current measles situation in a ten-year comparison
By mid-March, significantly more people have been infected this year than in 2018. At that time, there were just over 80 cases, today there are more than 230. In the ten-year comparison, 2019 is also above average, but - unlike the current Discussion suggests - not an extreme measles year.
By far the most cases occurred in 2015, at that time the RKI documented almost 1100 cases in the first eleven weeks of the year. In addition to Berlin, measles also increased in Bavaria (72 cases), Saxony (70 cases) and Brandenburg (67 cases).
The outbreak in Berlin shows what can happen when the highly contagious virus hits many people who are not vaccinated. Cities are particularly affected by outbreaks, because people live there more densely. In addition, there are a particularly large number of travelers, which increases the risk that someone brings the measles from another region.
It can meet all states - almost
A look at the RKI figures for the entire past ten years shows that almost no major state is immune from a measles outbreak - with one exception.
Nowhere in Germany is the risk of becoming infected with measles as low as in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. In spite of its approximately 1.6 million inhabitants, only 25 people have had measles in the country since 2009 - 16 of the cases occurred bundled in 2015 and occurred occasionally and at the same time as the outbreak in Berlin. In the years 2009 and 2012 not one person became infected in the whole of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
In addition to the low population density, the high vaccination rates could have contributed to measles freedom. In 2016, according to RKI, 95.8 percent of children in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania received both the necessary measles vaccines when they entered school, more than anywhere else.
Measles should be eradicated in Germany in 2015
Actually, Germany, in consultation with the World Health Organization (WHO), had set itself the goal of eradicating measles by 2015. For this, at least 95 percent of people would have to be vaccinated twice against the virus. Among the children enrolled in Germany in 2016, 97.1 percent had received the first vaccine. However, the second injection could only show 92.9 percent.
That some parents refuse especially measles vaccinations, also has to do with misinformation that is still circulating on the Internet. In 1998, a research team led by Andrew Wakefield claimed vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella could cause autism. Due to a "dishonest" presentation of the results, the publication was withdrawn. Wakefield had to give his approval as a doctor.
In the meantime, numerous studies have clearly refuted an association between vaccination and autism (last here). Nevertheless, the damage of the misinformation still affects today.
In the video: The bizarre world German vaccination opponents
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