The Orange County Health Department (OCHD) said on Friday that lab work confirmed a non-school aged child has measles.
Letters have been sent to the school, a hospital and a local doctor’s office the child visited while being infectious, asking that anyone who may have had contact with the child, be notified, a statement from OCHD said.
The health department is recommending exclusion of anyone potentially exposed at these facilities that have not received the appropriate dosage of measles vaccination. These persons should refrain from attending school, childcare centers and work until May 20, 2011, the end of the incubation period for anyone else potentially exposed to the disease.
Notification to the medical community has also been sent for enhanced surveillance for rash like illness, health department said.
People who have received their routine measles vaccination as children will have immunity and in most cases will be protected.
Parents are reminded the best way to protect their children is to make sure they are immunized against measles by the combination MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine. children should receive two doses: The first at 12 to 15 months of age, and the second at four to six years of age.
The symptoms of measles generally begin about 7-14 days after a person is infected, and include:
- Blotchy rash
- Fever
- Cough
- Runny nose
- Red, watery eyes (conjunctivitis)
- Feeling run down, achy (malaise)
- Tiny white spots with bluish-white centers found inside the mouth (Koplik’s spots)
Measles is spread through the air by infectious droplets and is highly contagious. It can be transmitted from four days before the rash becomes visible to four days after the rash appears. For more information about measles and vaccination information, go to www.cdc.gov/measles/index.html , or www.orchd.com/personalHealth/immunizations/index.asp.
