Rubella

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Symptoms
• Prevention and Risk Factors

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• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

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Summary

Rubella is an infection caused by a virus. It is usually mild with fever and a rash. About half of the people who get rubella do not have symptoms. If you do get them, symptoms may include:

• A rash that starts on the face and spreads to the body
• Mild fever
• Aching joints, especially in young women
• Swollen glands

Rubella is most dangerous for a pregnant woman's baby. It can cause miscarriage or birth defects.

Rubella spreads when an infected person coughs or sneezes. People without symptoms can still spread it. There is no treatment, but the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine can prevent it.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Start Here

• About Rubella (German Measles, Three-Day Measles) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Rubella (World Health Organization) Also in Spanish
• Rubella (German Measles) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Rubella: Questions and Answers (Immunization Action Coalition) - PDF

Symptoms

• Rubella Symptoms and Complications (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Prevention and Risk Factors

• MMR Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella): What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• MMRV Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Varicella): What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Rubella Vaccination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Related Issues

• Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR) Vaccine Safety (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Rubella (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Seroprevalence of Toxoplasmosis and rubella infection among women of childbearing age...
• Article: Comparative long-term follow-up study of persistence of immunity after JVC-001 measles,...
• Article: Rubella immunization policy in Japan: Immunity gaps arising from program differences...
• Rubella -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
• National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Women

• Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) Vaccine (In Pregnancy and While Breastfeeding) (Organization of Teratology Information Specialists) Also in Spanish
• Pregnancy and Rubella (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Patient Handouts

• Congenital rubella (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• MMR Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella): What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• MMRV Vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Varicella): What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish
• Rubella (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish