In Pennsylvania, what’s not disputed is that both people who died had been infected with measles and they were unvaccinated. The unresolved question is whether measles was the main cause, or a contributing cause, of their deaths.
In one of the deaths, an official has reached a conclusion. The Lancaster County Coroner, Dr. Stephen Diamantoni, said he is aware of only one death with evidence of measles infection. It was a newborn baby boy who died August 14 — someone too young to get a recommended measles vaccination.
Because one of the boy’s family members had measles, investigators tested the boy’s lung tissue and found evidence of measles infection, Diamantoni said.
But investigators did not see signs of a swollen spleen or other ravages from a measles infection that would have contributed to the death. The cause is being attributed to a tear in the spleen, but the coroner’s office says the virus did not play a role.
The baby “did not die as a result of measles,” Diamantoni said.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health initially refused to disclose any details about the two people who died. But on Wednesday night, state health officials posted on social media that one of the deaths is under investigation by the coroner’s office. No information has been released about the second death.
The department said it stands by its announcement, adding that it relies on two questions to determine if a death was measles-related: Did the person have measles and did they die?
As of Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not updated the latest national tally of measles cases and deaths. The agency said on its website that the scheduled update was delayed, but did not disclose why.
Dr. Paul Offit said he’s worried that two measles-related deaths are an unusually high number in a county that reportedly has about 400 cases. The expected death rate for measles is 1 in 1,000 cases.
That suggests there are a large number of other unreported infections in the Lancaster County area, said Offit, a Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia vaccine researcher.
That’s worrisome, given that this is the time of year when kids go back to school, which could increase the spread of an extremely transmissible disease. Vaccination efforts need to be stepped up “to prevent what I think is a coming disaster,” Offit said.
Adalja faulted Pennsylvania officials for how they announced the deaths earlier this week. It should have only been health and medical officials, stating what is known and not yet known.
“They should learn to keep the politicians out of it,” he said.
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