SSPE Causes & Risks

Causes

SSPE is caused by an altered form of the measles virus. It occurs anywhere from 2-10 years after contracting measles.

Risk Factors

The following factors are thought to increase the risk of SSPE:

Age: 5-15 years old
Gender: male
Infection in infancy
Not being vaccinated against measles
Ethnicity:
- Arabs and Sephardic Jews have an incidence that is six times higher than Ashkenazi Jews.
- Caucasians have a four-fold higher incidence than African Americans in the United States.

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