Allegheny County Confirms First Resident Measles Case

Overview

• County officials confirmed on Monday that an unvaccinated child who lives in Allegheny County tested positive for measles and that the patient is not in school.
• Health investigators identified limited public exposures, including two pediatrician visits and a visit to the Target at Pine Creek Shopping Center on Thursday, Oct. 1 between 3:45 p.m. and 5:45 p.m., and the health department is notifying potentially exposed people.
• The Pennsylvania Department of Health says the outbreak has passed 1,000 reported cases this year, with five measles-associated deaths and roughly 20% of identified patients hospitalized.
• Officials stress that two doses of the MMR vaccine provide about 97% protection, advise unvaccinated contacts to seek vaccination or medical advice and ask people to call ahead before visiting a clinic if they may have been exposed.
• Measles spreads easily by air and can linger for up to two hours, symptoms usually appear seven to 21 days after exposure, and the outbreak has more than doubled routine MMR demand with about 49,000 doses given in August and 53,000 in September compared with a typical month of roughly 25,000 doses.