Although it’s only the beginning of 2019, the measles virus, which was recently declared by the federal government to have been “eliminated” for two decades, has featured outbreaks in fifteen states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Washington.
The measles outbreak in the state of Washington is now the largest since 1996. According to Washington’s Secretary of Health, John Wiesman, the outbreak cause has been linked to an international traveler coming into contact with groups in Clark County, Washington that have low vaccination rates. Those infected are mainly unvaccinated children, says Dr. Kelly Orringer, the director of general pediatrics at the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital.
The New York State Department of Health has reported over 200 cases of measles since October of 2018; the outbreak stemmed from travels to and from Israel, and is contained mostly within Orthodox Jewish communities in New York (and a few in a neighboring orthodox community in New Jersey). According to New York’s state commissioner of health, Dr. Howard Zucker, the outbreak has resulted in the exclusion of upwards of 6,000 unvaccinated children from schools.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the symptoms of the measles virus — such as fever, cough, red and watery eyes, and runny nose — typically appear two weeks after infection. These initial symptoms are often followed by the development of a rash and Koplik spots (tiny white spots on the inside of the mouth). The virus lives in the nose and throat and can be spread to others through the air (usually via coughing and sneezing). The virus can remain active in the airspace for up to two hours and infected people can spread the virus to others from four days before to four days after the rash appears. The virus is highly infectious, so much so that 90% of those not immune to measles will become infected if in close contact with an infected person.
A family physician preparing the measles vaccine.
Image Source: Daniel Mihailescu
There is no prescription medication for the treatment of measles, but doctors may recommend infected people take medication to relieve the symptoms of fever and muscle aches. It’s important to note that the majority of those suffering from measles are small children who have not been vaccinated, and who live in areas that allow religious or philosophical exemptions from getting vaccines. According to Wiesman, “It’s pretty simple: You prevent measles outbreak by getting the measles vaccine”; just one dose of the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine is 93% effective, and two doses is approximately 97% effective in preventing infection.
Feature Image Source: gdinMika
