Measles Among Adults Associated with Adoption of Children in China — California, Missouri, and Washington, July–August 2006
Source: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (CDC)

During 2001–2005, import-associated measles cases (i.e., imported, import-linked, or imported virus cases) accounted for the majority of cases reported in the United States. Imported measles cases among adoptees from China have been reported previously. This report documents imported measles cases during July–August 2006 among adopting parents from the United States who were exposed to measles while visiting China.

China is the leading country of origin for foreign-born children adopted in the United States. During 1998–2005, annual U.S. adoptions of children from China increased by 88%, from 4,206 to 7,906. A national measles outbreak in China increased reported measles cases there from 70,549 in 2004 to 124,219 in 2005. In Guangdong Province, 11,146 measles cases were reported during January–June 2006, a 30% increase compared with the same period in 2005. This situation in China presented an increased risk for measles exposure to travelers and potential importation into the United States. China has set a measles-elimination goal for 2012, and the country is conducting activities to achieve this goal (e.g., conducting an international field review [November 2006] and convening the first National Technical Advisory meeting on measles elimination [December 2006]).

This entry was posted on Friday, February 23rd, 2007 at 1:28 pm and is filed under Children and families, China, Diseases and conditions, Health and healthcare. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.