Is rubella virus contagious?

Rubella is a highly prevalent disease that causes low fever, headache, loss of appetite, fatigue, weakness and cough. It is more likely to occur in children. Rubella is very harmful because it is an acute respiratory disease and the symptoms are often severe. Therefore, as a parent, you definitely want to know as much as possible about this disease, especially its contagiousness. So, is the rubella virus contagious?

Since spring and early summer are the peak seasons for rubella and there is more wind during this season, many people believe that rubella is caused by wind. In fact, rubella has nothing to do with wind. Rubella virus is an RNA virus belonging to the Togaviridae family, which is only transmitted between humans. Rubella is contagious, and the patient is the only source of infection. Some patients do not have obvious symptoms after being infected with rubella virus and are considered as latent carriers. These latent carriers are easily overlooked and become the most important source of infection.

The rubella virus is usually contagious for five to seven days before and three to five days after the onset of illness. People are most contagious on the day of onset and the day before. The virus can be transmitted through the patient's mouth, nose, saliva, blood, and urine. Rubella in children and adults is generally transmitted mainly by droplets through the respiratory tract. Rubella virus can also be transmitted through close contact between people. Newborns infected in the mother's womb can excrete the virus from the throat for several weeks or even months. Therefore, medical staff, family members, or other babies in the nursery who come into direct contact with bottles, nipples, clothes, and quilts contaminated with the virus can easily be infected. When a pregnant woman is infected with rubella, the disease is passed to the fetus through the placenta. The infected fetus may suffer from miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth, and various congenital malformations caused by congenital rubella. Therefore, pregnant women must be careful to stay away from patients with rubella to avoid infection.

Spring and summer are the peak seasons for rubella. Children aged five to nine are especially susceptible to rubella virus infection, so it is important to prevent rubella. To prevent rubella, the first thing to do is to avoid contact with rubella patients. During the rubella epidemic, children, pregnant women and other people with low immunity should not go to public places and avoid contact with rubella patients. At the same time, pay attention to home hygiene, open windows more often for ventilation, and maintain air circulation to accelerate the death of rubella virus in the air. Paying attention to nutritional supplements and improving one's own ability to defend against diseases can also effectively prevent rubella.