Massachusetts confirms first measles case since 2020
Health officials say the cases are linked to international travel.
Global alert for measles. Hospitals here say they are on high alert for early signs of an outbreak. To explain is Dr. Kristen Moffatt, infectious disease specialist at Boston Children’s Hospital. Doctor, it’s nice to see you. You know what I mean. It’s kind of weird to say measles. It’s still 2024. And by the way, the CDC also issued a national advisory this week. So what does that change for you and your emergency room colleagues? Well, I mean, in our facility, not much changes. Because, as you would expect, the two most common symptoms of measles, which is rash and fever, are also very common symptoms in pediatrics in general. And we care for a lot of children who are too young or immunocompromised to be vaccinated. So we’ve had to take precautions for a very long time to protect these individuals. And that means we’re still following all the infection prevention measures and trying to prevent the spread of measles. That’s why it’s so important that we pay close attention to local and national health alerts and be even more prepared for the possibility that a child with measles comes into our facility. Doc, if a child comes into your pediatrician with measles, what are the steps? What happens next? Yes. We often don’t realize right away that a child has measles. Or maybe they have. They may have already been evaluated by phone or video. It’s a physician evaluation. Measles is already a big concern. But really, any child with a rash, fever, any other symptom of concern, we isolate right away. Any staff that interacts with them would make sure to wear an N95, and then we start to gather more information. An important part of the evaluation includes vaccination status. Well, for people who are unvaccinated or undervaccinated, or certainly what we’re most concerned about, we look at their travel history to see if they’ve been to places where we know measles is widespread, but it can take a long time for a confirmatory test for measles to come back. So, if we have a high clinical suspicion of measles, we engage our public health colleagues pretty early on. Because it’s really early on to start contact tracing. Measles is most contagious in the days before the rash appears. So there are a lot of steps in that process that we have to think about and take right away. Now, Dr. Moffatt, as you know, the only people who can’t get the measles vaccine are infants under 6 months of age. Is that right? Correct. Yes. So what’s your advice to parents who have infants under 6 months of age? Yes. Frankly, at best, infants don’t get vaccinated against measles until they’re 12 months of age. They get vaccinated at 6 months of age. But most people don’t start getting vaccinated until they’re 12 months of age. So it’s natural for parents to be concerned, especially if we start to have measles outbreaks or we get cases here. So the first thing parents can do is to take protective measures to envelop their infants as much as possible. That means doing your best to ensure that everyone who spends time with your infant is fully vaccinated, and that starts at home. If your child is attending a group care facility or a day care center, it’s entirely appropriate to find out what the vaccination policy is for the staff and other children at that facility. It’s also entirely appropriate to ask how they would notify your family if they were potentially exposed to measles at that facility. There are a number of interventions that can be offered if a child is infected. So it’s really important that any center where infants may be spending time, especially if they’re too young to be vaccinated, is doing everything possible and taking advantage of every piece of information available to keep those children healthy. This is a good reminder, an important reminder.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed Thursday that an adult Worcester County resident who had recently traveled abroad was diagnosed with measles this month. This is the first confirmed case of measles in a Massachusetts resident since early 2020. Officials said people who may have been exposed to measles in this case have already been contacted and appropriate public health recommendations have been issued. “Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease that is increasing throughout the United States and around the world, including our neighboring New England states,” Surgeon General Dr. Robbie Goldstein said. According to officials, 30 states have reported cases of measles since early last year, most of which occur in unvaccinated people and communities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as of July 11, 2024, a total of 167 measles cases have been reported in 24 jurisdictions across the United States. The majority were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status (84%), 11% had received one dose of the measles, rubella, and mumps (MMR) vaccine, and 5% had received two doses. Nearly half (46%) of the reported cases were under the age of 5. Of the reported cases, 53% were hospitalized. There are currently large measles outbreaks in Europe and abroad. Many of the reported cases in the United States are linked to recent travel. Last month, the Department of Health warned residents about possible measles exposure linked to an international traveler who traveled to Amsterdam through Boston while infected. DPH urges anyone who is unsure of their measles vaccination status to contact their health care provider to receive at least one dose of MMR vaccination. Health care providers who suspect measles should immediately call DPH at 617-983-6800 for recommendations and testing guidance. Health care providers in Boston should call the Boston Public Health Commission at 617-534-5611.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed Thursday that an adult living in Worcester County who had recently traveled internationally was diagnosed with measles this month.
This is the first confirmed case of measles in a Massachusetts resident since the beginning of 2020.
Officials say people who may have been exposed to measles as a result of this case have already been contacted and provided with appropriate public health recommendations.
“Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease that is on the rise around the world, including here in the United States and our neighboring New England states,” said Surgeon General Dr. Robbie Goldstein.
Officials say measles cases have been reported in 30 states since the beginning of last year, with most occurring in unvaccinated people and communities.
As of July 11, a total of 167 measles cases have been reported across 24 jurisdictions across the U.S. in 2024, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The majority were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status (84%), 11% had received one dose of measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, and 5% had received two doses. Nearly half (46%) of the reported cases were in people under the age of 5. Of the reported cases, 53% were hospitalized.
There are currently large measles outbreaks in Europe and around the world.
Many of the reported cases in the U.S. are linked to recent travel. Last month, DPH warned residents about potential exposure to measles linked to an international traveler who traveled to Amsterdam through Boston while infected.
DPH urges anyone who is unsure of their measles vaccination status to contact their health care provider to receive at least one dose of the MMR vaccine.
Healthcare workers who suspect measles should immediately call DPH at 617-983-6800 for recommendations and testing guidance. Healthcare workers in Boston should call the Boston Public Health Commission at 617-534-5611.
