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A fifth case of measles has been confirmed in a person in the Baltimore North West region, the Maryland Department of Health said Friday.
Maryland is one of 23 states where measles is present, according to US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC reports that the 764 cases reported this year up to May 3 are the most reported in the United States since 1994 and that measles was eliminated in 2000.
Public health officials said the virus was highly contagious and that other cases were possible since the first case reported on April 5. So far, the five cases have been recorded in the Northwest Baltimore area in ZIP codes 21208, 21209 and 21215.
Officials encourage people to ask their health care provider if they have been vaccinated with two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, or MMR vaccine, which protects the vast majority of people.
Symptoms of measles usually develop between 10 days and two weeks after exposure to the virus, but can develop within a week or up to 21 days. Fever, runny nose, cough and red and watery eyes are the first symptoms. After four to four days, a red rash normally appears on the face and spreads all over the body. Someone is contagious for four days before the onset of rash, until four days after its onset.
Measles can cause serious complications, including pneumonia (lung infection) or encephalitis (swelling of the brain).
The US cases have been linked to travelers who brought back measles from countries such as Israel, Ukraine and the Philippines, where there are currently large outbreaks. Cases are proliferating in US communities with pockets of unvaccinated people, including in the Orthodox Jewish community of New York, New Jersey and Michigan, according to the CDC.
Jewish leaders in the Baltimore area urged community members to be vaccinated to prevent more cases and issued guidelines. They also called for caution when traveling to other areas affected by the disease, a warning that was issued when the Passover holidays began and families could visit relatives.
Public health officials spoke of the ease with which the virus is spread by coughing and sneezing. The virus can stay in the air for two hours.
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