Measles Fact Sheet

WAYNE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH

Description: Measles [rubeola] is a respiratory disease caused by a virus. The virus normally grows in the cells that line the back of the throat and in the cells that line the lungs.

Symptoms:

• Rash, high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes [lasts about a week]. Symptoms begin to appear about 10 to 12 days after exposure to the virus.
• The infected person first experiences a fever lasting about 2 to 4 days that can peak as high as 103 degrees F to 105 degrees F.
• This is followed by the onset of cough, runny nose, and/or conjunctivitis [pink eye]. The rash usually appears about 14 days after exposure and lasts 5 to 6 days.

Complications:

• Diarrhea, ear infections, pneumonia, encephalitis, seizures, and death.
• Measles causes ear infections in nearly one out of every 10 children who get it. As many as one out of 20 children with measles gets pneumonia, and about one child in every 1,000 who get measles will develop encephalitis.
• For every 1,000 children who get measles, one or two will die from it. Measles can also make a pregnant woman have a miscarriage, give birth prematurely, or have a low-birth-weight baby.

Transmission:

• The disease is highly contagious, and can be transmitted from 4 days prior to the onset of the rash to 4 days after the onset. If one person has it, 90% of their susceptible close contacts will also become infected with the measles virus.
• When that person sneezes or coughs, droplets spray into the air. The virus remains active and contagious on infected surfaces for up to 2 hours.

Vaccine and Immune Globulin:

• Measles vaccine [contained in MMR, MR and measles vaccines] can prevent this disease. The MMR vaccine is a live, attenuated [weakened], combination vaccine that protects against the measles, mumps, and rubella viruses.
• The MMR vaccine needs to be given to exposed people within 72 hours of being exposed to a person with measles disease. After 72 hours, the vaccine may not offer protection from that exposure.
• For those individuals who are immunocompromised or who could not receive the vaccine on time, immune globulin [IG] is recommended. IG however, must be given within 6 days of exposure to provide any protection against a recent exposure.

For information, contact the Wayne County Department of Public Health: 734-727-7000 or visit:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/measles/default.htm#safety

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