Alabama child has state’s first case of measles since 2002

The Alabama Department of Public Health on Monday reported the first case of measles in the state since 2002, a child younger than 5 in north Alabama.

According to the ADPH, the child was not vaccinated and contacted the measles while traveling outside the United States.

The child did not attend daycare or school, and entities involved in the management and treatment of the patient have been notified.

The child’s siblings have been vaccinated and have not had any symptoms of the disease, ADPH said.

Dr. Karen Landers, chief medical officer for the ADPH, said parents should make sure their children are up to date with their measles vaccinations.

If exposed, unvaccinated people have a 90% chance of becoming infected, and infected people can spread the disease, according to the ADPH.

See more: More Alabama toddlers going unvaccinated, especially for polio

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, measles was declared eliminated in 2000 because of the high rate of vaccination. But the vaccination coverage rate among kindergarteners has dropped below the 95% target rate, the CDC said, resulting in more measles activity.

In face, the U.S. is having its worst year for measles in more than three decades, as childhood vaccination rates against the virus decline and more parents claim exemptions from school requirements.

Before a recent outbreak in Texas, most doctors there had never seen a measles case because of how uncommon it has become, said Texas Department of State Health Services Commissioner Jennifer Shuford.

The CDC said 1,375 cases have been reported in the United States this year as of August 20.

What is measles?

The measles virus lives in the nose and the mucus in the throat of infected people. It causes a serious respiratory illness.

Measles spreads when people breathe in or have contact with virus-infected fluid. It can pass through droplets sprayed into the air when an infected person sneezes or coughs.

Symptoms usually appear 7-14 days after a person is infected.

“Measles follows a pattern in which the child first develops fever, cough, runny nose, and watery/red eyes, then a rash develops,” Landers said.

“Persons can start spreading the virus up to four days before symptoms appear, and those with weak immune systems can spread the measles virus longer.”

What to know about the measles vaccine

For most children, measles protection is part of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR), or measles-mumps-rubella-varicella vaccine, given when children are 12 to 15 months old and again when they are 4 to 6 years old.

The first MMR vaccine can be given to babies as young as 6 months of age if they will be traveling internationally or during an outbreak.

Estimates of the effectiveness of the MMR vaccine are 99 percent in measles prevention after the second vaccination, the ADPH said.

Vaccines are available at pediatricians’ offices or county health departments. Getting the MMR vaccine is much safer than getting the measles disease, the ADPH said.

More about measles and the MMR vaccine.

In some cases, measles can lead to other problems, such as ear infections, pneumonia or encephalitis.

There is not a specific antiviral drug to treat measles.

Therapies to help with symptoms include plenty of fluid and rest and non-aspirin fever medicine such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen.

The ADPH said parents should call a doctor immediately if they believe their child has measles or if their child has been around someone who has measles, especially if their child is an infant, is taking medication that suppresses the immune system, has tuberculosis, cancer or a disease that affects the immune system or has not received two doses of the measles vaccine.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.