Virginia's second case of measles this year has been confirmed in the Charlottesville area. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports.
Full disclosure: VDH underwrites programming on WMRA.
The Virginia Department of Health reported last Friday that a teenager who had recently traveled internationally had tested positive for measles. Health officials published a list of times where the public could have been exposed to the patient between May 20th and 23rd at the Charlottesville Albemarle Airport, Play it Again Sports, the Goodwill on Gander Drive, UVa Primary Care Riverside, and the UVa emergency department.
MEREDITH ROBINSON: Measles is characterized by a rash that begins on the face and spreads downwards. A measles patient is infectious four days before the rash begins to four days after.
Meredith Robinson is an epidemiologist with the Virginia Department of Health. She said she couldn't release any information about the confirmed patient's condition.
ROBINSON: Even for one measles case, it's a large public health response, because measles is so easily spread through the air that many people are considered exposed just with there being one case. So anyone who's on the same air handling system … that's how easily it can spread. Fortunately, many people are vaccinated, and the vaccine provides lifetime immunity.
Some immunocompromised people can't be vaccinated, and babies aren't vaccinated until six months old or later. If you're unsure about your vaccination status, you can request the record from your local health department or on the VDH's website if you were vaccinated in Virginia. They can also help you locate a record from another state.
Robinson said that if someone thinks they were exposed to measles, they should notify the local health department or their doctor. If you're at risk, a public health worker may check on you every seven days during the disease's three-week incubation period to ensure you don't develop symptoms.
