CDC alert about measles for healthcare workers as cases increase

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is advising healthcare workers to stay vigilant for measles cases due to a rising number of infections. From December 1, 2023, to January 23, 2024, there have been 23 confirmed cases of measles, including seven cases from international travelers and two outbreaks with five or more infections each. The cases have been reported in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and the Washington, D.C. area. Most of these cases were among children and adolescents who had not been vaccinated against measles, despite being eligible. According to the CDC, most measles cases in the U.S. occur when unvaccinated or partially vaccinated Americans travel internationally, contract the disease, and then spread it to those who are unvaccinated upon their return.
The federal health agency stated that the increase in cases in the U.S. reflects a global rise in infections and that there is a “growing global threat.” Healthcare providers should be on the lookout for patients who have febrile rash illness and symptoms consistent with measles, and have recently traveled abroad, especially to countries with ongoing measles outbreaks. If health care workers suspect a patient has measles, the CDC recommends isolating the patient immediately for at least four days from when symptoms appear and notifying the local or state health departments. The patient should then be tested, post-exposure prophylaxis should be provided to close contacts, and all contacts who are not up to date on their measles vaccinations should be vaccinated. Measles is a highly contagious disease and individuals infected by the virus can spread it to up to 10 close contacts if they are unprotected, including not wearing a mask or not being vaccinated. Complications from measles can range from relatively benign, such as rashes, to much more severe, including viral sepsis, pneumonia, or brain swelling.
The CDC states that anyone who either had measles at some point in their life or who has received two doses of the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine is protected against measles. One dose of the measles vaccine is 93% effective at preventing infection if exposed to the virus, while two doses are 97% effective. In 2000, measles was declared eliminated from the U.S., thanks to a highly effective vaccination campaign, but outbreaks have occurred in unvaccinated pockets of the country in recent years. Between November 2022 and February 2023, 85 children were sickened with measles in Ohio, 80 of whom were unvaccinated. In California, an unidentified person with measles who visited Disneyland caused an outbreak, infecting 125 people between December 2014 and February 2015.

Author: OpenAI