New Mexico measles cases continue to rise in SE corner
Pruritus is the spotty red rash from measles. A measles outbreak has infected 124 people in west Texas and 10 people in southeastern New Mexico. (iStock / Getty Images Plus)
New Mexico on Friday reported four new measles cases in Lea county — bringing the total statewide to 42 infections, all in the state's southeast corner.
The small rise in cases doesn't indicate the end of the outbreak, NMDOH Communications Director Robert Nott told Source NM.
'We don't want people to think the threat of measles is declining or over,' he said. 'We're still in spring break for some school districts and people are traveling.'
Current measles cases include eight young children aged 0 to 4-years old; 10 school aged children and 23 infections in adults.
On Tuesday, The New Mexico Department of Health warned that a Texas traveler earlier this month exposed people in Guadalupe and Valencia counties to measles over the course of two days at a church, restaurant, gas station and hotel.
NMDOH: Possible measles exposure in Guadalupe and Valencia counties
Health officials said they have no additional information since issuing the advisory.
Measles is a highly contagious respiratory virus and symptoms may take one to three weeks to develop.
People can spread the disease before they experience symptoms such as a fever, spotty red rash, cough, runny nose or red eyes. About one in every five infections is serious enough to warrant hospitalization, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Serious complications from measles include brain swelling, blindness, pneumonia and death.
One dose of the vaccine offers 93% protection against the measles, while two doses offers 97% protection, according to the CDC.
Texas health officials on Friday announced 30 more cases, bringing the total there to 309 cases, mostly concentrated in Gaines County, Texas, which has one of the lowest kindergarten vaccine rates in Texas. Most measles infections struck unvaccinated children.
The outbreak led to the first recorded measles deaths in a decade: a Texas six-year old girl, and an unidentified adult in Lea County, which remains under investigation.
Check vaccine records at Vax View website or call the Department of Health's immunization program at 1-833-882-6454, available weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
NMDOH directs any questions about measles tests, symptoms or vaccines to the Helpline at 1-833-796-8773. The helpline is staffed by nurses who can answer questions in English or Spanish.
Here's an updated list of vaccine clinics hosted by the New Mexico Department of Health:
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