Elimination of rubella and congenital rubella syndrome: we did it together! Foreword.

摘要

Surveillance for measles elimination clearly demonstrated the substantial disease burden of rubella and congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) in the Western Hemisphere. In this context, in 2003 the Member States of the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) adopted the initiative to eliminate rubella and CRS from the Region by 2010.Once political commitment had been galvanized for rubella elimination, PAHO recommended that vaccination and surveillance strategies be executed with the primary aim of rapidly reducing the pool of susceptible individuals to rubella infection. This ultimately led to interruption of endemic transmission. The last endemic confirmed case of rubella in the Americas was reported in February 2009.