Commentary & Perspectives

Clinicians Warn of Fatal Measles Brain Disease

Doctors caution that measles infection can lead to SSPE, a rare fatal neurologic disease that may appear years later.

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Deepanwita Dasgupta, an eight-year-old from Bangalore, faces paralysis and silence due to subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), a severe complication of measles contracted in childhood. First exhibiting symptoms at five, her condition deteriorated after a spinal tap confirmed measles in her cerebrospinal fluid. Experts warn that declining vaccination rates could lead to a resurgence of SSPE, which affects about one in 10,000 measles patients, particularly those infected before age five. Current trends in the U.S. raise significant concerns about the future incidence of SSPE.

Original Source(s)

Clinicians Warn of Fatal Measles Brain Disease

  • by Rae Ellen Bichell

  • March 13, 2026

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