AUBURN, Calif. — Three new cases of the measles have been identified in Northern California, according to Placer County Public Health. The three cases come just days after reported cases of the measles in Butte and Tehama Counties.
The three people diagnosed are all in the same family, the department said, but the Auburn Racquet and Fitness Club has been identified as a location where others may have been exposed. No additional exposure locations, including schools, have been identified at this time.
POSSIBLE EXPOSURE
With the California Department of Public Health reporting seven confirmed cases of measles in the state this year, including reported cases in Northern California, Placer County Public Health strongly urges everyone to get vaccinated.
Members and guests of the Auburn Racquet and Fitness Club who were at the club on March 18 between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. may have been exposed to measles.
Anyone who was at the club after 7 p.m. and has not received two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, or MMR, is urged to call the Placer County Public Health Division right away at 530-889-7183.
SYMPTOMS
Measles spreads very easily by air and nonimmune people can become infected simply by being in the same room with someone who has measles, even after the infectious person has left the room.
Those who develop an illness with fever (101 degrees or higher), cough, runny nose or red eyes, with or without rash, should call their healthcare provider.
The symptoms of measles generally appear about seven to 21 days after a person is infected.
One in every 20 people with measles develops pneumonia and, more rarely, serious, even life-threatening complications can occur. Those infected with measles can be infectious for up to four days prior to and after developing the measles rash.
Those experiencing symptoms should not go out in public or to a clinic, hospital or physician’s office before calling the facility first to help prevent the spread of disease. Anyone diagnosed with measles should stay home until they have been cleared by a doctor.
The best protection against measles is two doses of measles vaccine, MMR, the Center for Disease Control said. Measles vaccine has been available in the United States since 1963, and two doses have been recommended since 1989.
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