Florida health officials on Sunday announced an investigation into a measles outbreak at an elementary school in the Fort Lauderdale area, where vaccination rates are low, a scenario that is becoming increasingly common as vaccination rates decline nationwide. Health experts are concerned that this could happen.
On Friday, Broward County Public Schools reported a confirmed measles infection in a student at Manatee Bay Elementary School in Weston. Local CBS affiliate station reported that a third-grade student who had not recently traveled was infected. On Saturday, the school system announced three additional cases were reported at the same school, bringing the total number of cases now reported to four.
on sundayannounced by the Broward County, Florida Department of Health (DOH-Broward) health advisory The company announced that it would launch an investigation into this case to trace any contacts who may be at risk of infection.
At Manatee Bay Elementary School, the number of children at risk could exceed 100.according to Broward County goes to vaccine research Only 89.31% of Manatee Bay Elementary students were fully vaccinated for the 2023/2024 school year, significantly below the targeted vaccination rate of 95%, local CBS station reported. ing. The school currently has 1,067 students enrolled, and vaccination status suggests up to 114 students may be vulnerable.
Measles is one of the most contagious viruses known. Spread through respiratory and airborne infections. The virus can linger in the air for up to two hours after an infected person has been in the area. Unvaccinated people or people with compromised immune systems are more susceptible, and up to 90% of susceptible people exposed to the virus will become infected. Measles symptoms usually begin about 8 to 14 days after exposure, but the disease can incubate for up to 21 days. Symptoms begin as a high fever, runny nose, bloodshot, watery eyes, and cough before an obvious rash appears. An infected person can be contagious from 4 days before the rash appears until 4 days after the rash appears. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Approximately 1 in 5 unvaccinated measles patients are hospitalized; the CDC addedMeanwhile, 1 in 20 infected children will develop pneumonia, and up to 3 in 1,000 children will die from the infection.
People who are not immunocompromised and have been fully vaccinated against measles (those who have received two doses of measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine) are usually not considered at risk. not. The intake amount for 2 doses is Approximately 97% effective Measles prevention is thought to be lifelong.
DOH-Broward said it is currently “identifying susceptible contacts who may be candidates for post-exposure prophylaxis with MMR or immunoglobulin.”
Although the risk of measles is generally low in the United States (the country declared measles-free in 2000), the threat of outbreaks has increased as vaccination rates decline. Many of the U.S. cases are linked to travel from countries where the virus is still endemic. However, if travel-related cases occur in areas with low vaccination rates, the virus could spread. The same was true in 2019, when the country reached 1,274 measles cases, almost losing its eradication status.
Health authorities typically consider vaccination coverage to be 95 percent or higher to prevent ongoing infection. In the years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccination rates among U.S. kindergarteners have fallen to 93%, and the latest data for the 2022-2023 school year shows that vaccination exemption amounts have dropped to 93%. reached an all-time high. There are currently at least 10 states with vaccination exemption rates above 5%, which would be sufficient to reach the 95% goal even if all non-exempt children were vaccinated. This means that a suitable vaccination rate cannot be obtained.
As compiled by the CDC There have been 20 measles cases in the US so far this year.. However, this is his tally as of February 15th. It does not include Florida cases reported since Friday. In 2023, 58 measles cases were reported to CDC.
This article has been updated with additional information about the consequences of measles infection.
