ZMC Health Department Reports Measles Outbreak

ZANESVILLE, OH – The Zanesville-Muskingum county Health Department has reported three laboratory confirmed cases of measles were identified in three children in Muskingum County.

All three children are from the same family, they are all currently home and improving.

The Health Department has been working with the family and hospital to identify and follow-up with any exposures and contacts, and help where needed.

Measles is a highly contagious virus. Individuals infected with measles can spread it to others who do not have immunity from prior disease or vaccination, even before they have symptoms. The measles virus can live for up to two hours in the air after an infected person leaves the room. Symptoms usually appear 7 to 14 days after a person comes in contact with the virus, but it can take as long as 21 days for symptoms to appear.

Measles symptoms include: high fever (may spike from 103° F to 105° F), cough, runny nose, pink/red, watery eyes, and a red/brown blotchy rash. The rash will appear on the face and then spread to the trunk and extremities. Rash and other symptoms usually subside in 7 to 9 days.

According to the Ohio Department of Health, about one out of every five people who get measles will be hospitalized. Approximately one out of every 1,000 people with measles will develop brain swelling due to infection (encephalitis) which may lead to brain damage. Nearly 1 to 3 out of 1,000 people with measles will die, even with the best care.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends all children get two doses of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, starting with the first dose at 12 through 15 months of age and the second dose at 4 through 6 years of age.

Anyone traveling internationally should be fully vaccinated before traveling. Infants 6-11 months old should get one dose of the MMR vaccine before travel, then should receive two additional doses after their first birthday.

Older children, adolescents, and adults should receive one or two doses of MMR vaccine if they do not have evidence of immunity. If you have received two doses of the MMR vaccine, your chances of getting measles are very low. After two doses, the vaccine is approximately 97% effective at preventing measles.

For more information and updates, visit the Zanesville-Muskingum County Health Department’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ZMCHD. For more information about measles, visit https://www.cdc.gov/measles/