Virginia health officials have confirmed the fourth measles case in the state this year. The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) reported that the patient is a school-age child from the Eastern Region who recently traveled internationally. No further details about the patient are being released to protect their privacy.
Health authorities are working to identify individuals who may have been exposed at several locations in Virginia Beach and Norfolk. The potential exposure sites include Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters (CHKD) Health Center and Urgent Care at Loehmann’s Plaza on August 27, CVS Pharmacy on Laskin Road on August 28, and CHKD Emergency Department/Hospital between August 30 and September 1.
According to VDH, people who were present at these locations during the specified times should assess their vaccination status. Those with two doses of a measles-containing vaccine or born before 1957 are considered protected. Individuals without prior vaccination may be at risk and should contact their healthcare provider promptly.
“Everyone should watch for symptoms for 21 days after the date of your potential exposure.If you notice symptoms of measles, immediately isolate yourself by staying home. Contact your healthcare provider right away. If you need to seek healthcare, call ahead before going to your healthcare provider’s office or the emergency room to notify them that you may have been exposed to measles and ask them to call the local health department. This call will help protect other patients and staff.
Anyone with an immunocompromising condition should consult with their healthcare provider if they have questions or develop symptoms.
If you have received only one dose of a measles-containing vaccine, you are very likely to be protected and your risk of being infected with measles from any of these exposures is very low. However, to achieve the highest level of protection, contact your healthcare provider about getting a second vaccine dose.”
Measles spreads easily through respiratory droplets when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes. Symptoms usually appear seven to fourteen days after exposure and begin with fever, runny nose, red eyes, and cough. A rash follows three to five days later, starting on the face before spreading elsewhere on the body. People can transmit measles from four days before until four days after the rash appears.
The disease is preventable through two doses of MMR vaccine, which provide lifelong protection in most cases. Virginia maintains high vaccination rates among kindergarteners—about 95% are fully vaccinated against measles (https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/coverage/schoolvaxview/data-reports/measles.html). Infants too young for vaccination or unvaccinated individuals remain vulnerable if exposed.
Travelers aged six months through eleven months headed abroad or into outbreak areas should receive one dose of MMR vaccine prior to departure.
Residents seeking information about their immunization status can contact their healthcare provider or use VDH’s Immunization Record Request Form (https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/immunization/immunization-record-request-form/). For more details about measles or recent exposures in Virginia, visit www.vdh.virginia.gov/measles/.
“To check your immunization status, call your healthcare provider or request your vaccination records using the VDH Immunization Record Request Form. Virginia residents with additional questions about their potential exposure can contact their local health department or email epi_response@vdh.virginia.gov.”
Virginia Beach residents can reach out to their local Department of Public Health at 757-278-6290; Norfolk residents can contact theirs at 757-683-2735.
