Rubella Vaccines

Rubella, usually a mild rash illness in children and adults, can cause serious consequences when a pregnant woman is infected, particularly in early pregnancy. These serious consequences include miscarriage, fetal death or an infant born with birth defects (i.e., congenital rubella syndrome (CRS)). The primary purpose for rubella vaccination is the prevention of congenital rubella infection including CRS. Since 1969, several rubella virus vaccines have been licensed for use; however, until the 1990s, use of rubella-containing vaccine (RCV) was limited primarily to developed countries. In 2000, the first World Health Organization rubella vaccine position paper was published to guide introduction of RCV in national childhood immunization schedules. From 1996 to 2010, the number of countries that introduced RCV into their national routine childhood immunization programs increased by 57% from 83 countries in 1996 to 130 (67%) countries in 2010. In 2011, the WHO rubella position paper was revised to include a wide age campaign prior to introduction in the routine childhood program. After 2011, no countries introduced RCV into just women of childbearing age. In addition, three of the six WHO regions established rubella elimination goals: By 2022, 175 (90%) countries have introduced RCV; 5 WHO regions have rubella elimination goals with one region (PAHO) has achieved their regional goal.