Complications

Complications of rubella are rare and include: (1)

• thrombocytopaenia
  • occurs in about 1 in 3000 individuals with rubella
  • commonly seen in children
• encephalitis and polyneuritis
  • encephalitis – 1 in 6000 cases
  • frequent in adults
• arthritis or arthralgia in adolescents
  • seen in up to 70% of adult women with rubella
  • usually fingers, wrists, and knees are affected
  • chronic arthritis is rare
• in pregnant women (2)
  • during first trimester – miscarriages, foetal deaths/stillborn
  • congenital rubella syndrome – may present with one or more of the following
    • cataracts and other eye defects
    • deafness
    • cardiac abnormalities
    • microcephaly
    • intra-uterine growth restriction
    • lesions of brain, liver, lungs and bone marrow

References:

1. UK Health Security Agency. Rubella (German measles): guidance, data and analysis. Published 1 April 2013. Last updated 22 November 2022
2. Mawson AR, Croft AM. Rubella Virus Infection, the Congenital Rubella Syndrome, and the Link to Autism. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Sep 22;16(19):3543