West Virginia has a confirmed case of measles – here’s what to do if you’re exposed
PRINCETON, WV (WVNS) — It has been fifty-six years since the improved version of the measles vaccine was created. Now, West Virginia could be facing a potential outbreak of this highly contagious disease.
The first positive case of measles since 2009 was confirmed by West Virginia Department of Health officials on April 22, 2024.
Now, over one hundred people in 30 counties have possibly been exposed.
Residents of Mercer, McDowell counties may have been exposed to measles
Measles is a highly contagious viral, airborne disease, so even being near someone who has it or has been exposed to it could mean your own exposure.
Karen Bowling, CEO of WVU Medicine Princeton Community Hospital said your best option is isolation.
“If you’ve been exposed, you definitely have to quarantine to make sure you don’t expose others,” said Bowling. “As an example, if a person comes into a clinic [and] we diagnose later that they have the measles, everyone they came in contact within that clinic has to be quarantined.”
She recommends calling your primary care doctor if you develop symptoms such as a high fever or a rash of red spots anywhere on your body.
Because measles is so highly contagious, if you are diagnosed with it, Bowling states that you will have to be quarantined for at least two weeks.
She said that catching this disease is dangerous in more ways than one.
“People who are exposed to measles, they have to be off work. Many times it influences their family, [ . . . ] if their children have been exposed they can’t go to daycare for a certain period of time. It limits people’s ability to work, so I tell people all the time that when you’re talking about these kinds of diseases, it isn’t just the health implications – it’s the economic implications for those individuals,” said Bowling.
Some of those exposed in this case could still possibly develop symptoms according to Bowling. This means that there could be many more people exposed to measles than first thought.
The West Virginia Department of Health officials are monitoring the original group in order to determine if more action needs to be taken.
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