Five measles cases have been confirmed in Utah since June 20. The Utah Department of Health and Human Services says two people were hospitalized due to complications from the disease, but have since been released.
Dr. Leisha Nolen, the state epidemiologist, said during a June 26 news conference that the hospitalizations involved people with minor symptoms.
“But they were still significantly ill,” she noted. “So it is concerning that this is happening when we only have identified five people who have measles.”
Two of the cases were people who were also pregnant, but it is unclear from Nolen if they were the ones in the hospital.
“We really want to get the message out that if anybody is considering becoming pregnant, that they go and check that they are vaccinated,” Nolen said. “And if they are not vaccinated, to get the vaccine, because it is a vaccine that can be given before pregnancy, but not during pregnancy.”
Symptoms include a high fever, cough, runny nose, red watery eyes, tiny white spots in the mouth and rash. Measles can cause hospitalization, pneumonia, brain swelling, seizures, a weakened immune system and even death. People with the infection will experience symptoms between one and three weeks after being infected.
Still, Nolen said 90% of Utahns are vaccinated against measles, meaning they’re well protected.
“For most of us, there is not a need for significant concern,” she said. “I do think the people who are unvaccinated, it is a time to start really talking to your doctor, talking and thinking about what the risks are to you and your family.”
The department is concerned about people in southwest Utah, where the vaccination rate is lower based on school immunization data.
One of the cases was a minor, but Nolen said they seem to be doing well. Children under 1 year old cannot get the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, meaning they’re at higher risk for infection.
“We are specifically concerned about minors because we know the younger kids are more likely to be hospitalized,” she said. “So that is a group we always are concerned about.”
If someone suspects they have measles, they should call their doctor. They should also call ahead to a clinic before going there to avoid spreading the disease to others in a waiting room.
Nolen said the department expects to see additional cases because there were several people exposed to the first infected individuals.
“Many of them are not protected by vaccines, so we expect a number of them will also become infected with measles, so we are in close contact with those individuals,” she said. “We also do believe there are a number of infections in Utah that are undetected.”