Eight percent of Leelanau County students are not vaccinated for measles.
“Our goal is to have 95% of our school-age kids vaccinated,” said Michelle Klein, personal health director of the Benzie-Leelanau District Health Department. “Anything less than 90% and those exposed will get it.”
Measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000. This was thanks to a very high percentage of people receiving the safe and effective measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. In recent years, however, according to the Centers for Disease Control:
• U.S. MMR coverage among kindergartners is now below the 95% coverage target — much lower in some communities— and is decreasing.
• Global measles activity is increasing, meaning more chances of an unvaccinated person infected with measles abroad returning to the United States.
Foreign family traveling was the source of the county’s most recent report of measles a decade ago.
“They came home and brought back an unintended guest,” Klein said, referring to the measles virus.
An unvaccinated child contracted the virus and brought it home with him infecting another student who hadn’t been vaccinated.
The spotlight on immunizations has become stronger given the current outbreak the nation and previous statements made by recently-seated Health and Human Services Director Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy has questioned the importance of vaccines and made unsubstantiated claims of their connection to autism.
A vaccination was approved for measles in 1963. However, it wasn’t released with mumps and rubella — the trio immunization (MMR) — for children until in 1971.
Measles spread through the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks, releasing tiny droplets containing the virus that can remain airborne for up to two hours.
And what better place for germs to spread than school.
As of March 7, measles patients nationwide were: between ages 5-19 (48%); and 34 percent for ages 5 and under, according to the CDC.
SYMPTOMS OF MEASLES INCLUDE:
• Fever: High fever (over 101°F or 38.3°C)
• Cough: Dry, persistent cough
• Runny nose: Coryza
• Sore throat: Pharyngitis
• Red, watery eyes
• Conjunctivitis (Pink Eye)
• Koplik’s spots: Small, white spots with blue-white centers inside the mouth
• Rash: A red, blotchy rash that starts on the face and spreads to the rest of the body Other symptoms: Fatigue, malaise, loss of appetite, diarrhea.
Symptoms usually appear 7-14 days after exposure to the virus.
The rash typically appears 3-5 days after the fever starts.
The fever and rash gradually resolve over several days.
Measles can lead to serious complications, especially in young children and immunocompromised individuals. These complications can include: pneumonia, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), ear infections, and seizures.
For more information about vaccinations or to schedule an appointment go to bldhd.org.
