A Howard County resident tested positive for measles after returning from international travel. Health officials are now warning people that if they went to Dulles International Airport and a hospital emergency department at a certain time, they may have been exposed. News4’s Joseph Olmo reports.
A Howard County resident tested positive for measles after returning from international travel, and people may have been exposed to the highly contagious disease at Dulles International Airport and a hospital emergency department, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Howard County health officials.
The Virginia Department of Health, the Maryland Department of Health and Howard County health officials are looking to identify people who might have been exposed, including contacting potentially exposed passengers on specific flights.
Anyone who visited the following locations during the following hours may have been exposed:
- Dulles International Airport (IAD)'s Terminal A on transportation to the main terminal and in the baggage claim area between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Wednesday, March 5
- Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center Pediatric Emergency Department on Friday, March 7 from 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
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Anyone who has not received the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine or another measles vaccine offered in another country may be at risk of developing measles, the Virginia Department of Health said in a release.
Those who may have been exposed should contact their healthcare provider for additional guidance. They can also call Howard County Health Department’s Infectious Disease Surveillance and Response Program at 410-313-6284 or the Virginia Department of Health at (804) 363-2704 or email epi_response@vdh.virginia.gov.
Officials say the measles case is not associated with the measles outbreak in Texas and New Mexico.
Measles is highly contagious, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
"If one person has it, up to 9 out of 10 people nearby will become infected if they are not protected," a CDC webpage says.
Further information about the Maryland patient's age or condition wasn't released.
What the Maryland Department of Health says about symptoms and who is at risk
The Maryland Department of Health shared this information about measles in a press release:
Early symptoms of measles are a fever of more than 101 degrees Fahrenheit, runny nose, cough, and red, watery eyes. Usually, one to four days after the early symptoms, a red rash appears on the face and spreads to the rest of the body.
Measles symptoms typically develop 10-14 days after exposure to the virus but can develop as soon as seven days and as long as 21 days after exposure. A person with measles is contagious, beginning four days before the rash appears until four days after the rash begins.
People are generally considered immune to measles if they have had two measles vaccine shots, previously had measles or laboratory evidence of immunity or infection, or were born in the United States before 1957. Those who are most at risk of complications from measles infection are pregnant women, infants less than one year old, and those who are immune compromised.
