As a child, Dr. Christoph Diasio’s colleague got the measles.
It was before 1963, so the vaccine wasn’t available. As he told Diasio decades later, he spent 10 days in his bedroom so he wouldn’t spread the disease to the rest of his family. Even dim light was so painful to be around, he recalled, he spent the entire 10 days with the lights off and his head under the pillow.
“This is the most contagious disease in the history of human beings on the planet Earth,” said Diasio, who has been a pediatrician for 24 years and is a member and former president of the North Carolina Pediatric Society. “It is way more infectious than flu, way more infectious than COVID, more infectious than smallpox. I mean, this is a big deal.”
Although North Carolina has not been affected by the virus thus far, medical professionals warn that clusters of unvaccinated individuals could leave the state vulnerable. As the measles virus reemerges in parts of the country, doctors are urging parents to get their children vaccinated to help prevent the spread.
