VietNamNet Bridge – As many as 50 pregnant women are undergoing an abortion daily at the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynaecology because they had contracted rubella at the beginning of their pregnancy.

Between 80-120 pregnant women with suspected rubella are visiting the hospital's Centre for Pre-natal Diagnosis daily – three times higher than in previous years, said Tran Danh Cuong, head of the hospital's Obstetrics Ward.

"This year the rubella epidemic has reached its highest level so far, Cuong said.

Most pregnant women whose foetus had died in their womb did not know they had rubella.

"Patients often ignore a slight fever and few rashes on their bodies because they think it unimportant," he said.

Cuong added that a woman diagnosed with rubella whose baby is under-18 weeks old should have an abortion to avoid their child suffering from blindness, cataracts, heart deformity, brain disease and mentally retardation.

Pregnant woman whose baby is over 18 weeks old should continue with their pregnancy under close supervision by medical staff, he added.

"However, it is difficult to discover if a foetus is malformed by ultrasound. The diagnosis should be based on a doctor's experience," Cuong said.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Trung Cap, deputy head of the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases' Emergency Ward, said rubella can't be treated but that it could be prevented by vaccination.

Women should have the vaccination three or four months before becoming pregnant. When they are pregnant, they should not be vaccinated, Cap said.

"The disease is spread through contact with respiratory mucus, so people should not be in contact with someone with the disease," he said.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News