State Health Officials Caution Residents About Increased Incidents of Measels

ALBANY – New York State is seeing one of the highest incidents of measles outbreaks in the past 20 years and as a result, Governor Andrew Cuomo and the State Department of Health is alerting New Yorkers about the importance of being vaccinated to protect against the disease.

According to Governor Cuomo, Measles is serious, highly contagious disease that is not just contained to young children. He says that while many New Yorkers have likely already received measles vaccinations, the State is taking the opportunity to urge New Yorkers check with their healthcare provider to make sure they and all of their family members’ immunizations are up-to-date.

Measles is so contagious that if one person has it, 90 percent of the people close to that person who are not immune will also become infected with the measles virus. It is spread by contact with nasal or throat secretions of infected people.

Measles symptoms usually appear in 10 to 12 days, but can occur as late as 18 days after exposure. Symptoms generally appear in two stages:

• In the first stage, which lasts two to four days, the individual may have a runny nose, cough and a slight fever. Eyes may become reddened and sensitive to light while the fever gradually rises each day, often peaking as high as 103° to 105° F. Small bluish white spots surrounded by a reddish area may also appear on the gums and inside of the cheeks.
• The second stage begins on the third to seventh day, and consists of a red blotchy rash lasting five to six days. The rash usually begins on the face and then spreads downward and outward, reaching the hands and feet. The rash fades in the same order that it appeared, from head to extremities. Although measles is usually considered a childhood disease, it can be contracted at any age.

Officials say the single best way to prevent measles is to be vaccinated.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that measles has infected 129 people in 13 states in 2014, the most in the first four months of any year since 1996; 29 of those infections have been in New York.