VOA常速英语2019--美国卫生部规劝父母为孩子注射麻疹疫苗（在线收听）

Measles was eliminated in the US 19 years ago. The only cases now are those that are imported from other countries. That’s happening in the US with greater frequency. Measles is incredibly contagious. Once it gets around the community, it’s very difficult because it’s airborne. Eighteen states allow parents to not vaccinate their children if they have moral, personal or philosophical objections to it. A measles outbreak in Washington State has health officials scrambling to contain it.

麻疹19年前在美国就根除了。现在的病例都是其他国家的患者，这种情况在美国出现的频率与日俱增。麻疹的传染性很高，一旦进入社区内，就很难控制疫情，因为麻疹是通过空气传播的。18个州允许父母选择不为孩子接种疫苗，前提是他们对接种疫苗这件事有情感上、个人因素上或者哲学上的排斥。华盛顿州爆发的一场麻疹让一些卫生部官员对如何抑制疫情伤透了脑筋。

I hope I’m wrong, but I think the cases are going to get more frequent, and spread throughout the country from this epicenter. Rural areas in the US tend to have higher numbers of unvaccinated children, but there are significant numbers in cities such as Houston, Austin and Seattle, where immunization rates are low. Houston just reported two cases of measles in children under the age of two. Doctors including the US Surgeon General are urging parents to get their children vaccinated. As the United States Surgeon General, I want everyone to know that the best protection against measles is getting vaccinated. The vaccine is almost 100 percent effective. Doctors recommend that children get two doses of the vaccine. One dose of vaccine, about 95 percent of children will become protected against measles.

我希望我是错的，但我确实认为，现在病例发生的频率比越来越高，而且是以华盛顿州为中心向全国传播。美国农村地区的疫苗接种人数更高，但很多城市中还是有大量人口的疫苗接种人数很低，比如休斯敦、奥斯汀和西雅图等。据报道，休斯敦有2起儿童麻疹病例，且患者均在2岁以下。包括美国卫生部医务总监在内的很多医生都规劝父母们给孩子接种疫苗。作为美国卫生部医务总监，我希望所有人都了解一件事——对抗麻疹最好的办法就是接种疫苗。疫苗几乎是100%有效的。医生的建议是：孩子最好注射2剂疫苗。但只要注射1剂疫苗后，约95%的儿童都可以得到免疫，对麻疹产生免疫。

The reason that we give a second dose is because about 5 percent of children do not respond to the first dose, so with two doses, over 99 percent of children are protected against measles. Measles makes people very sick. It’s especially dangerous for children. One-third of those cases will end up hospitalized, and that may be due to a variety of complications. Complications such as pneumonia or encephalitis, a swelling of the brain, can be deadly or lead to permanent disability. That’s why doctors urge parents to get their children vaccinated.

还要注射第2剂的原因是：约有5%的儿童对第1剂不会产生免疫反应，所以要注射2剂，这样一来，99%以上的儿童就能产生针对麻疹的免疫。麻疹会让人病恹恹，对儿童来说尤为危险。1/3的麻疹患者最后都要住院治疗，这可能是因为产生了很多并发症的原因。并发症，如肺炎或脑炎、脑肿胀，可能有致命危险，也可能导致永久残废。因此，很多医生才规劝父母们为孩子注射疫苗。