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VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) – The number of confirmed measles cases near Portland has increased to 31 Friday, an epidemic fueled by lower-than-normal vaccination rates in what has been called an anti-vaccination "hot spot" in the United States.
Public health officials in southwestern Washington, just across the Columbia River and from Portland, Oregon, said people may have been exposed to dangerous disease in more than three dozen localities , including the Portland International Airport, a Portland Trail Blazers match, a location located at stores such as Costco and Ikea.
Twenty-six of the confirmed patients had not been vaccinated against measles and the immunization status of four other infected persons is unknown. A child was hospitalized. The authorities indicate that nine other cases are suspected.
A case has also been confirmed in King County, home to Seattle, and another Friday night in Multnomah County, where Portland is located.
Most cases involved children under the age of 10, the Clark County Public Health Department said in a statement. An adult is infected and the others are teenagers. Oregon officials did not report the age of the infected adult.
Democratic Democrat Jay Inslee said Friday a public health emergency in his country. Authorities in neighboring Oregon and Idaho issued warnings.
According to Inslee, the number of cases "creates an extreme risk to public health that could quickly spread to other counties".
Measles vaccine has been a routine childhood vaccine for decades and measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000.
But measles is still a big problem in other parts of the world. Travelers infected abroad can introduce the virus into the country and transmit it, causing periodic epidemics.
Last year, there were 17 outbreaks and about 350 measles cases in the United States.
Officials still do not know where this outbreak began. The first known patient sought medical attention on December 31, but it is not known if other people have ever been sick and have not sought treatment. Public health officials are attaching for the moment to prevent further exposures.
It could take weeks or even months before the "deliciously infectious" virus gets underway in Washington, said Friday Dr. Alan Melnick, Clark County Health Officer.
People who choose not to vaccinate their children underestimate the dangers of the disease, said Melnick, who had himself had measles while he was a child, before the vaccine was trivialized.
Before vaccination, 400 to 500 people would die from measles each year, 50,000 people were hospitalized and 4,000 people developed brain swelling that could lead to deafness, he said. Between one and three out of 1000 cases are fatal, he said.
"This is one of the most contagious viruses we have. There can be serious complications … and it's totally preventable with an incredibly cheap and safe vaccine, "said Melnick.
Clark County has already spent more than $ 100,000 trying to contain the outbreak and staff are being relieved of other duties, including restaurant inspections, he said.
"Everything is on the bridge. Obviously, it will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and it would not surprise me if we figured in the seven figures when we finished here, "he said. "These costs could have been avoided if everyone had been vaccinated."
Clark County, which includes the community of Portland, Portland County, has a measles vaccination rate of 78%, well below the 92-94% required for so-called "herd immunity", said Marissa Armstrong, spokesman for the department. Group immunity occurs when unvaccinated people are protected from infection because almost everyone around them has been vaccinated and is immunized against a disease.
The vaccination rate against measles in 2-year-olds in Multnomah County, where Portland resides, was 87% in 2017, according to state data. The measles vaccine includes two injections, one administered at the age of 2 years and the other between 4 and 6 years in general.
Data on the vaccination rate of Portland for both vaccines were not immediately available.
Two doses of the vaccine in childhood have an effectiveness of 97% and confer immunity for life. One dose is effective at about 93%.
Washington and Oregon both allow vaccine exemptions for personal and philosophical reasons. The vaccine exemption rate in Clark County for non-medical reasons was high at 7.5%, Armstrong said.
The incubation period for measles is seven to 21 days, which means that an unvaccinated person who has been exposed could stay in public for up to three weeks before getting sick. Patients remain contagious for four days after developing the rash.
The virus, spread by coughing or sneezing, can stay in the air for up to two hours in an isolated area. Ninety percent of people exposed to measles who have not been vaccinated will be vaccinated, public health officials said.
Whenever an unvaccinated person who has been exposed to measles goes out in public, "it starts all over again," Armstrong said.
Earlier this week, the authorities managed to identify several people who had been exposed but were not yet sick. These people stayed home and then became ill, Armstrong said.
Those who may have been exposed must watch for the onset of the first symptoms of fever and discomfort, as well as a rash beginning on the head and descending into the body. Serious complications such as pneumonia and brain infections can occur in some cases.
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