Shades of Typhoid Mary: Now it’s Measles Marys

The unfortunate and infamous Typhoid Mary was a sprightly Irish immigrant cook who was followed by typhoid everywhere she went.

Her name was Mary Mallon and she was the first asymptomatic typhoid carrier identified by medical science.

New York health officials told Mary that she was spreading typhoid, but because she had no symptoms she didn’t believe them and refused to quit cooking for affluent families, even using aliases to avoid being caught.

Typhoid Mary was responsible for the infection of at least 51 people, including three deaths. But given to her use of aliases, some authorities estimate she may have been responsible for 50 typhoid deaths.

Because she wouldn’t cooperate with authorities, she spent nearly three decades in quarantine. The first was from 1907 to 1910. Authorities believed that typhus bacteria were in Mary’s gallbladder and wanted to remove it. Mary refused so she was incarcerated for three years. Finally, she agreed to take hygienic precautions and not hire out as a cook.

During the next five years Mary returned to cooking and adopted aliases. Typhoid followed her from job to job.

Finally arrested again, in 1915, and placed in quarantine, remaining there until her death in 1938. A post-mortem surgery found live typhoid bacteria in her gallbladder.

So what does this have to do with today’s measles epidemics in Washington and in other areas of the United States?

There is a strong analogy. Both typhoid fever and measles are highly infectious — even deadly — and people can be immunized to both by vaccination.

Typhoid is caused by a bacterium, whereas measles is caused by the rubeola virus; but in both instances, people without symptoms can spread the organisms that cause the disease. We have just seen (above) that such is the case with typhus. How about measles?

A person infected with rubeola is contagious up to four days before symptoms are apparent. Thus, an unvaccinated person who contracts the rubeola virus can pass it along to dozens, even hundreds of people before they know they have the measles.

A 95 percent vaccination rate is necessary to protect a community, often described by epidemiologists as “the herd,” a term obviously borrowed from the livestock industry.

Unfortunately, many communities don’t achieve a 95 percent vac cination rate, which is measured in kindergarten students in public and private schools.

Why aren’t all vaccinated?

Some have legitimate medical reasons, some have religious objections, in some states citizens are allowed to declare a personal or philosophical reason, and then, of course, some just evade the law.

The result is that Washington has thousands of potential Measles Marys or Johns who can cause measles epidemics among the unvaccinated.

Note measles “not spots” in our Evergreen State. Washington is one of 17 states that permit non-medical exemptions for vaccines for “personal, moral or other beliefs.” In plain English, these states allow citizens to flout science, many in favor of false, scientifically disproven claims that vaccines aren’t safe.

Seattle’s KING TV reported last September that few schools meet our state’s immunization goal. The program said 17.1 percent of Washington’s vaccination exemptions are for medical reasons; 83 percent were for claims of personal philosophy or religion. Only 258 schools meet the 95 percent target for kindergarteners; 1177 are below.

There is no room for personal philosophy, or even for religious objection, where the public health is concerned. The science is very solid. Vaccination is in a child’s best interest, and in the public’s.