Measles Confirmed in Girl: Other Cases Are Suspected; Parents Urged to Be Alert
By Ruby L. Bailey, Detroit Free Press
Oct. 12–Washtenaw County health officials have confirmed one case of measles in Ann Arbor and testing is under way on two suspected cases in that city and one in Ypsilanti.
But three suspected cases in Ann Arbor have been ruled out, officials said Thursday. And an Ann Arbor case that was reported positive earlier this week is being retested after a lab mix-up, officials said. Results are expected today.
“Parents should be alert” to possible symptoms “and see their physicians,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Schuchat participated in a late-afternoon news conference at which the CDC, the Washtenaw County Public Health Department and the Michigan Department of Community Health announced the findings. A CDC lab in Atlanta is conducting the testing.
The confirmed case involves a girl at Angell Elementary School. Officials said they would be watching through Oct. 24 for additional measles cases resulting from exposure to the child.
Measles symptoms usually occur from seven to 18 days after exposure, but may take as long as 21 days to materialize, officials said. A person is contagious from four days before a rash appears until four days afterward.
Measles is an acute viral illness that can cause severe pneumonia, diarrhea, encephalitis and even death, the CDC says. It is spread by droplets from the mouth through sneezing, coughing or speaking and is highly contagious. Early symptoms include a runny nose, watery eyes, cough and a high fever.
Nationally, there are fewer than 100 confirmed cases of measles annually, because most children receive the MMR vaccine for mumps, measles and rubella. The vaccine is 99% effective at prevention.
The child at Angell Elementary was vaccinated with the required two doses, officials said.
The suspected cases involve one child at the Perry Child Development Center in Ypsilanti, one child at Wines Elementary in Ann Arbor and one child at Burns Park Elementary in Ann Arbor. Two cases at Burns Park Elementary were ruled out, along with one suspected case at Bach Elementary in Ann Arbor, officials said.
The case that is being retested involves an 8-year-old girl at Burns Park Elementary. Officials said the CDC lab mixed up her sample with another.
Contact RUBY L. BAILEY at 313-222-6651 or rbailey@freepress.com.
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