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VANCOUVER, WA (KPTV) – The measles epidemic continues to grow and now includes 23 confirmed cases and two suspected cases.
Clark County public health officials say it could take weeks, if not months.
A mother had a close call with her son.
Jaxin Hale is a restless 4-year-old girl who runs and plays constantly.
But last week, his mother, Jamie Carle, knew something was happening. Her baby boy was in bed with a fever and rash.
Given the latest measles outbreak in Clark County, she feared the worst.
Her son had been to Vancouver Home Connection the week before, which is on the risk list.
"I was scared," Carle said. "Seeing these symptoms was kind of like a thing of disbelief where I did not want to badociate it with measles, but it happened to the point where all these symptoms appeared and I have to do something more or at least report it to someone who can tell me what to do.
The good thing is that Jaxin had received the two doses of measles vaccine, 97% effective, and after being interviewed with the Clark County Public Health Department, Carle realized that her son was fine
It turns out that Jaxin has just had eczema and fever at the same time.
But in the last count, 23 others are not so lucky.
"I do not see the end of this case in the near future," said Dr. Alan Melnick, director of public health for Clark County. He added that low vaccination rates in the country were like starting a fire for this incredibly contagious disease.
The county has a vaccination rate of 78%.
Ideally, he says it would be over 90%.
"What keeps me awake at night is the possibility that we lose a child because of this disease or that we have serious complications," Melnick said.
And as the number of cases and exposure sites continues to grow, this epidemic could last for months.
This is the first time that Clark County has been diagnosed with measles since 2011.
Dr. Melnick said that someone had probably caught measles from another country, and then it spread like wildfire to anyone who was not vaccinated.
The likelihood of getting measles after your vaccination is extremely low.
Copyright 2019 KPTV-KPDX Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved.
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