Common Symptoms and Damages of Measles

The Latin name for measles is rubeola. The pathogen which causes the disease is a paramyxovirus, which is one of a group of RNA (ribonucleic acid) viruses. Measles is a respiratory disease caused by a virus, and also comes out in a rash. The virus enters the body via the respiratory system, and grows in the cells at the back of the throat and in the cells that line the lungs, from there it then enters the blood stream and circulates the body.

Common Symptoms

Usually a person doesn’t start to get symptoms of measles until they have been infected with the virus for 7-11 days. The symptoms are:

• Runny nose

• Dry hacking cough

• Sore throat – lymph nodes swell

• Sneezing

• Fever – this can be mild or severe and can reach 105Fº

These symptoms are often passed off as cold or flu, so the measles isn’t usually detected until later on. Other symptoms include:

• Conjunctivitis (pink eye)

• Photophobia (sensitivity to light)

• General aches

• Koplik’s spots – these are spots inside the mouth, throat and side’s of cheek, they are a greyish-white colour.

• Spotty red rash...