Rubella infection quintuples from previous year in Japan

The number of rubella patients reported this year in Japan has jumped more than fivefold to 496 from 93 in the previous year, with many cases reported in the greater Tokyo area, a national institute warned Wednesday.The patients included many men in their 30s to 50s who have not been vaccinated sufficiently against the highly contagious disease often transmitted through coughing and sneezing, the National Institute of Infectious Diseases said.In the week through Sept. 9, the number of rubella patients reported rose to 127 from 81 in the previous week, according to the institute, which espec…READ FULL ARTICLE