Outbreaks of measles in developing countries may be reduced by vaccinating infants at 4.5 months of age as well as at the World Health Organization's recommended routine vaccination at 9 months, according to a study published on BMJ.com today.

The United States is engulfed in a massive outbreak of measles. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention registered about 64 cases of the measles infection this year.

News stories about an allegedly harmful link between the mumps, measles and rubella vaccine and the onset of autism had little effect on whether U.S. parents immunized their children, according to a review of immunization records and news stories. Parents’ decisions were more likely influenced by recommendations from their child’s pediatrician, the researchers said.

Researchers say measles, which has been successfully controlled in most countries thanks to vaccination, remains a killer disease in Niger, in part because of migration triggered by the rainy season. VOA's Jessica Berman reports from Washington health workers are calling for better surveillance and cooperation between public health workers and the government to control measles outbreaks.

Measles epidemics in Niger fluctuate wildly from one season to another but the timing of the outbreaks always coincides with the end of the annual rainy season, according to an international team of researchers.

Two new studies emphasize the importance of delivering measles and influenza vaccines to HIV-infected individuals. Both studies are published in the August 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online.

HIV-infected children may require repeat measles vaccination for protection, according to new research from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and other institutions. The researchers found that only half of the HIV-infected children who survived without antiretroviral therapy maintained protective antibody levels 27 months after receiving measles vaccine.