• It is caused by the virus Rubeola
• The virus lives in the nose or throat of an infected person.
• The disease is highly contagious and the virus spreads through the mucus or saliva of the infected person.
• The infected droplets spread into the air through sneezing and coughing and may fall on surfaces; this can remain active for several hours.
• The risk factors include:
• Not vaccinated - Measles can be prevented by MMR vaccine. The protects from Measels, mumps and rubella.
• Vitamin A deficiency

Common complications associated with measles are:

• Ear infection: it is the most common complication and can lead to hearing loss or make the person permanently deaf
• Diarrhea: can be a feature of measles infection.

Other serious complications may include:

• Pneumonia: most common cause of death due to measles.
• Encephalitis and convulsion: brain swelling can lead to convulsion which can make the child deaf or intellectually disabled
• Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE): it is very rare but fatal disease of the central nervous system which results from a measles virus infection acquired earlier in life