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Clinical features

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

There is an incubation of from 14 days, up to 21 days (1), after which clinical features include:

  • prodromal symptoms - may be none in young children; older children and adults may may present with a 1-5 day prodrome with symptoms like fever, headache, malaise and upper respiratory symptoms (2)
  • pink macular rash -
    • usually the first sign of the disease, seen in 50-80% of rubella infected individuals (2,3)
    • transitory, erythematous maculopapular rash appears over one or two days. It fades within four days, leaving neither staining nor desquamation (1,2)
    • may be mildly pruritic (2)
      • develops behind the ears and on the face and neck and then spreads to the trunk and limbs (1,2)
      • in some patients no rash develops at all
  • cervical lymphadenopathy -
    • may precede the rash by a week and may persist for several weeks (2)
    • post-auricular, sub-occipital and posterior cervical nodes are commonly involved
  • arthralgia & arthritis
    • seen mostly in adolescent and adult women (60-70%)
    • usually fingers, wrists, and knees are affected symmetrically
    • symptoms tend to appear during or shortly after the rash and pain may last for about one to four weeks (2)
  • grittiness of eyes and suffusion of conjunctivae

Reference:


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