Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Jennifer Benedict | It’s not hard to connect the dots. Once considered eradicated, measles is now...... read more read more
It’s not hard to connect the dots.
Once considered eradicated, measles is now escalating.
Naval Hospital Bremerton public health and preventive medicine providers have been paying close attention to locally confirmed measle cases in the Puget Sound area, as well as outbreaks across the country.
While there isn’t cause for alarm, but there is always a need for awareness.
“Measles is an airborne, extremely infectious, and potentially severe viral illness. It is spread when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes to release virus in the air. Measles can cause a mild febrile illness with a rash or lead to hospitalization (one in five), pneumonia (one in 20), brain infection and possibly death,” said Capt. Jackie McDowell, NHB preventive and occupational medicine physician.
“Our population should have effective herd immunity,” added McDowell, noting that military personnel are mandated to have measles vaccine and are therefore less at risk from the highly contagious disease. Military families also historically follow recommended Centers for Disease control and Prevention guidelines for vaccines and help promote herd immunity in and around base facilities.
There have been three confirmed cases in Washington State, including the latest with an infant most likely exposed while traveling abroad, who also went through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. There have been over 600 measles cases across the U.S. with the overwhelming majority of those confirmed cases in unvaccinated individuals.
“Measles is highly contagious. If one person has it, up to nine out of 10 people nearby will become infected if they are not protected by vaccination,” explained McDowell. “Vaccination helps significantly reduce this risk. Protect yourself with the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. Two doses of MMR vaccine are about 97 percent effective at preventing measles. One dose is about 93 percent effective.”
In anticipation of servicemembers preparing for summer permanent change of station orders with family members, as well as increased travel activity over spring and summer season, McDowell recommends ensuring vaccinations are up to date. Discuss with your medical team regarding early measles vaccination prior to any international travel and travel to high-risk areas in the United States with measles outbreaks.
“Measles spreads through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. You can get measles just by being in a room where a person with measles has been. This can happen even up to two hours after that person has left,” McDowell said.
The CDC notes that those who are primarily impacted by the preventable virus are children and adolescents who had not been vaccinated with the MMR vaccine.
NHB’s Immunization Clinic is providing vaccinations on a walk-in basis, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, from 8 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. and from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., and Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 11:45 a.m., for Measles, as well as acute respiratory illnesses – influenza, RSV [respiratory syncytial virus], COVID, and TDaP - which in Washington State is a school-required vaccine for students in grades 7-12.
Additionally, the influenza vaccination is required for all active-duty military personnel, selected Reservists, and healthcare workers.
McDowell attests that complications are most common in children under 5 years and adults over age 30.
“Anyone with a weakened immune system from medications or other diseases are particularly at risk. If a woman catches measles during pregnancy, this can be dangerous for the mother and can result in her baby being born prematurely with a low birth weight or stillborn,” McDowell stressed.
Symptoms of measles include a child developing a high fever with red, watery eyes, a cough and runny nose, followed in three to five days with a rash that starts in the face and spreads down the body, which “can lead to seizures, pneumonia, and even swelling of the brain,” stated McDowell.
According to McDowell, the first indication of measles will most likely be contact [from] someone who has measles or from traveling to an area with a measles outbreak.
“If traveling or potentially exposed, you should monitor for symptoms and the distinctive rash that spreads from head down the body to the hands and feet,” said McDowell.
Those symptoms usually begin seven days to two weeks after exposure to the virus and last four to seven days. The rash usually begins on the face and upper neck.
“It spreads down the body over about three days, eventually to the hands and feet. It usually lasts five to six days before fading. The spread from head down to limbs is a crucial finding as rashes are extremely common with viral illnesses and most do not spread like measles,” remarked McDowell.
For those who think they - or a family member – might have been infected by measles, McDowell stresses to immediately contact their healthcare provider for proper and timely treatment.
“It is [also] better to call the medical staff to understand which door to enter as measles is highly contagious. Proper precautions need to be taken to prevent spreading the virus to others providing care or receiving care,” said McDowell.
Up-to-date outbreak information is available on the official CDC webpage: https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/index.html
| Date Taken: | 04.14.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.14.2025 09:58 |
| Story ID: | 495240 |
| Location: | BREMERTON , WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 164 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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