Philadelphia health officials are warning travelers of a possible measles exposure at Philadelphia International Airport early this week.
The Philadelphia Department of Public Health is notifying travelers and others, who may have been exposed. This incident is unrelated to the recent measles exposures at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the department said in a news release.
» READ MORE: CHOP’s measles exposure shows the growing danger of Pa.’s outbreak, experts say
The exposure occurred in Terminals B and F, and in areas connecting to Terminals C, D, and E, on Sunday, Sept. 13, from 7:25 p.m., to Monday at 12:05 a.m.
A person with measles was traveling through Philadelphia and didn’t leave the airport, according to the health department. Officials are encouraging anyone who may have been exposed to check their vaccination status and monitor symptoms.
“Anyone who is not immune, is unsure of their vaccination status, is an infant, is pregnant and not immune, or is immunocompromised should contact a healthcare provider as soon as possible,” the department said in the release, adding that some people may still be eligible for treatment that can prevent the disease or reduce its severity.
Officials are urging anyone experiencing symptoms tocall ahead before visiting a healthcare facility and notify the provider about the exposure.
“This week’s measles exposures are a reminder of how important it is for all of us to be up to date on our vaccinations,” city Health Commissioner Palak Raval-Nelson said in the statement. “Every Philadelphian who is fully vaccinated has little to fear from the situation at CHOP and the airport. Even more importantly, every one of those people is doing their part to help protect our most vulnerable from measles.”
Raval-Nelson is encouraged residents to visit the city’s website, phila.gov/measles, to learn more about measles and the MMR vaccine.
Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak, largest in the nation this year, has sickened more than 760 people. The state has confirmed four measles-associated deaths, the most seen in the nation in more than three decades.
The state’s outbreak is centered in Lancaster County, right outside of the Philadelphia region, and measles is actively spreading in suburban Chester County. The widening outbreak has affected more than half Pennsylvania’s 67 counties.
Two doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine have proven 97% effective at preventing the disease, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.
Nine in 10 unvaccinated people exposed to measles will acquire the disease.
Typical measles symptoms include a high fever, a cough, runny nose, red, watery eyes, and a rash. Measles can cause severe complications, especially in young children, including pneumonia and brain swelling. While deaths are rare, about three in 1,000 children who contract measles will die.
Measles, long considered eradicated in the United States, is resurging amid declining vaccination rates. Scientists say that about 95% of a community should be vaccinated to prevent spread.
In the Philadelphia region, at least 40% kindergartens were vulnerable to an outbreak as of last school year, up from 33% the prior year, according to an Inquirer analysis of school immunization data widely used to assess community protection levels,