1. Home
  2. Vaccination Hesitancy

Vaccination Hesitancy

Measles 2025

Author/s: 
Lien Anh Ha Do, Kim Mulholland

Measles is a highly contagious virus with a primary case reproduction number (i.e., the average number of secondary cases per case patient) of 12 to 18. It is currently spreading rapidly owing to reduced measles vaccination coverage, which is due primarily to the disruption of local immunization programs by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic and of growing vaccine hesitancy.1 Since 2024, all World Health Organization (WHO) regions have reported increased numbers of measles cases, with 395,521 laboratory-confirmed measles cases reported in 2024 and 16,147 reported during the first 2 months of 2025.2 Patients in more than half the reported cases were hospitalized, so the true number is probably much higher.3
This review covers clinical presentations and complications of measles, current recommendations, and the epidemiologic background of measles. It also addresses the current debates on immunization and the treatment of measles and presents information on the origins of the various measles vaccines and updates on measles diagnostic testing and molecular genotypes.

Keywords 
measles vaccines Epidemiology

Addressing Faith-Based Concerns about Vaccination

Author/s: 
William E Cayley Jr

Religious beliefs are cited as one cause of declining vaccination rates, and religious participation has been associated with hesitancy to receive vaccines. However, many personal vaccine objections attributed to faith-based reasons are more likely matters of personal faith interpretation rather than based on the teachings or traditions of a religious community. Studies have demonstrated ways faith-based hesitancy or skepticism toward vaccines can be addressed at both the individual level and the community level. Evidence to date suggests faith-based vaccine hesitancy and may be best approached through education that addresses and accounts for the patient's spirituality, and by collaboration with organizations that are connected to patients' religious communities.

Keywords 
Immunization patient education Religion Spirituality vaccination

Covid-19 Vaccines — Immunity, Variants, Boosters

Author/s: 
Barouch, D. H.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic has claimed an estimated 15 million lives, including more than 1 million lives in the United States alone. The rapid development of multiple Covid-19 vaccines has been a triumph of biomedical research, and billions of vaccine doses have been administered worldwide. Challenges facing the Covid-19 vaccine field include inequitable vaccine distribution, vaccine hesitancy, waning immunity, and the emergence of highly transmissible viral variants that partially escape antibodies. This review summarizes the current state of knowledge about immune responses to Covid-19 vaccines and the importance of both humoral and cellular immunity for durable protection against severe disease.

Keywords 
United States Biomedical Research vaccines Pandemics Immunity
Subscribe to Vaccination Hesitancy