(The Atlantic) – The current U.S. measles outbreak follows, in some ways, a classic pattern: The virus first found a foothold where childhood vaccination is low—among Mennonites in Texas, in this case—before rapidly spreading to other communities and states. It has sickened mostly children and has now killed a second child, whose death was reported this weekend. With cases still ticking up, experts expect the outbreak to persist for a year.

Look closely at the outbreak’s edges, though, and the patterns are more unusual: It’s not just children getting measles. Where Texas’s outbreak has spilled over into New Mexico, for example, half of the confirmed cases and one potential death involve adults, largely unvaccinated. Last year, too, adults older than 20 accounted for more than a quarter of U.S. measles cases. This is all in keeping with what experts have warned: Adults are now susceptible to this childhood disease. (Read More)