Colorado on Friday reported its 33rd measles case of the year — in a child from Montezuma County who had not been vaccinated against the disease.
The child has not traveled recently outside of Colorado and is not known to have had contact with other infected people, raising the possibility that measles is spreading undetected in southwestern Colorado.
“The lack of a clear source of infection suggests that unidentified measles cases may be occurring in or traveling through the Cortez area,” the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment wrote in a news release.
The agency identified one possible location in Cortez where people may have been exposed to the virus as a result of the new case: The Cold Stone Creamery at 215 S. Sligo St., on Wednesday, Nov. 26, between the hours of 3:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. People who may have been exposed should monitor themselves for symptoms of measles until Dec. 17. If you think you may have been exposed, call ahead to the doctor’s office or clinic before going in to allow staff to protect themselves and other patients.
A measles virus particle, artificially colored in red, is seen in an image taken through an electron microscope. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, via Flickr)
This is the second measles case reported in Montezuma County in the past month. In November, CDPHE reported that a school-age child had been infected and may have exposed others in Cortez and Mancos. That child, who was also unvaccinated, had recently traveled to another state where there is an ongoing measles outbreak, CDPHE said.
Montezuma County has one of the highest rates of measles immunization for people 18 and younger in Colorado — 94.3% have received at least one dose of the MMR vaccine, tying the county for 10th among Colorado’s 64 counties, according to CDPHE.
A course of two doses of the MMR vaccine is considered 97% effective at preventing measles, while one dose is 93% effective.
This year, 25 of the 33 Coloradans infected with measles were either unvaccinated or had an unknown vaccination status. Seven were double-vaccinated, while one person had received one dose of vaccine.
There have been 13 children ages 17 and younger who have been infected, including six under the age of 5. There have been five hospitalizations and no deaths reported.
Early symptoms of measles present like a common cold: fever, runny nose, cough and red eyes. The telltale rash appears later, typically beginning on the face and spreading to the rest of the body.
In the most serious cases, measles can cause trouble breathing or brain swelling
Type of Story: News
Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.