Latest news with #KDPH
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles cases reported in New Jersey, Kentucky amid ongoing outbreak in Texas
More measles cases are being confirmed across the United States as health officials work to treat patients in an ongoing outbreak in Texas. The Kentucky Department for Public Health (KDPH) and the Franklin County Health Department announced on Wednesday a confirmed case of measles in an adult resident, the first in the state in two years. The departments said the resident recently traveled internationally to an area where measles is spreading. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, health officials confirmed two new measles cases in Bergen County linked to a patient whose case was confirmed earlier this month. Officials haven't found any links between the cases in Kentucky and New Jersey, and there's no evidence the cases in Kentucky or New Jersey are connected to the outbreak in Texas, which has so far sickened 124 people and led to one death in an unvaccinated school-aged child. MORE: Texas measles outbreak grows to 124 cases, mostly among unvaccinated Kentucky health officials are now attempting to contact anyone the infected resident may have come into contact with. The resident attended a Planet Fitness in Frankfort on Feb. 17 while contagious, officials said. "Measles is one of the most contagious viruses in the world," KDPH Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack said in a statement. "Fortunately, measles can be prevented with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which is safe and effective. Vaccines are an essential tool to keep children and adults safe and healthy." An official briefed on the situation told ABC News on Thursday that the new cases in New Jersey are members of the same family and were not vaccinated. Because they are in the same family, public health officials are hopeful public spread will have been limited. The original case tested positive after traveling internationally. The New Jersey Department of Health said people may have been exposed to measles if they visited Englewood Hospital's Emergency Department on Feb. 5. Health officials said people who were exposed could develop symptoms until as late as March 6. MORE: Measles cases are rising in US as Texas outbreak grows. Should we be concerned? Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known to humans. Just one infected patient can spread measles to up to nine out of 10 susceptible close contacts, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health officials have been urging anyone who isn't vaccinated to receive the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine. The CDC currently recommends that people receive two vaccine doses, the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective. Most vaccinated adults don't need a booster. Measles was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 due to the highly effective vaccination program, according to the CDC. However, CDC data shows vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years. ABC News' Matt Foster contributed to this report. Measles cases reported in New Jersey, Kentucky amid ongoing outbreak in Texas originally appeared on
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles cases reported in New Jersey, Kentucky amid ongoing outbreak in Texas
More measles cases are being confirmed across the United States as health officials work to treat patients in an ongoing outbreak in Texas. The Kentucky Department for Public Health (KDPH) and the Franklin County Health Department announced on Wednesday a confirmed case of measles in an adult resident, the first in the state in two years. The departments said the resident recently traveled internationally to an area where measles is spreading. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, health officials confirmed two new measles cases in Bergen County linked to a patient whose case was confirmed earlier this month. Officials haven't found any links between the cases in Kentucky and New Jersey, and there's no evidence the cases in Kentucky or New Jersey are connected to the outbreak in Texas, which has so far sickened 124 people and led to one death in an unvaccinated school-aged child. MORE: Texas measles outbreak grows to 124 cases, mostly among unvaccinated Kentucky health officials are now attempting to contact anyone the infected resident may have come into contact with. The resident attended a Planet Fitness in Frankfort on Feb. 17 while contagious, officials said. "Measles is one of the most contagious viruses in the world," KDPH Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack said in a statement. "Fortunately, measles can be prevented with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which is safe and effective. Vaccines are an essential tool to keep children and adults safe and healthy." An official briefed on the situation told ABC News on Thursday that the new cases in New Jersey are members of the same family and were not vaccinated. Because they are in the same family, public health officials are hopeful public spread will have been limited. The original case tested positive after traveling internationally. The New Jersey Department of Health said people may have been exposed to measles if they visited Englewood Hospital's Emergency Department on Feb. 5. Health officials said people who were exposed could develop symptoms until as late as March 6. MORE: Measles cases are rising in US as Texas outbreak grows. Should we be concerned? Measles is one of the most contagious diseases known to humans. Just one infected patient can spread measles to up to nine out of 10 susceptible close contacts, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health officials have been urging anyone who isn't vaccinated to receive the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine. The CDC currently recommends that people receive two vaccine doses, the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective. Most vaccinated adults don't need a booster. Measles was declared eliminated from the U.S. in 2000 due to the highly effective vaccination program, according to the CDC. However, CDC data shows vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years. ABC News' Matt Foster contributed to this report. Measles cases reported in New Jersey, Kentucky amid ongoing outbreak in Texas originally appeared on
The Guardian
27-02-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
First case of measles reported in Kentucky as US battles spread of disease
The first confirmed case of measles has been reported in Kentucky, health authorities have announced, opening a new front in the US spread of the disease. The Kentucky department for public health (KDPH) said that an adult who had recently traveled to another country had contracted the disease. The person had been at a Planet Fitness gym while infectious, potentially exposing others. This is the first case of measles in the state since 2023. It comes as the US battles the spread of the highly contagious virus, which this week claimed the life of an unvaccinated child, marking the first US death from the disease since 2015. There have been three outbreaks of measles so far this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The most serious of those is in west Texas where the virus is spreading largely among the Mennonite community in which rates of vaccination are low. Nine states in total have reported cases of measles. In addition to Kentucky and Texas, that includes: Alaska, California, Georgia, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Rhode Island. Steven Stack, who heads the public health department in Kentucky, urged people to get vaccinated. He pointed out that rates of vaccinations among Kentucky kindergartners was only 90%, lower than the national average. 'Measles is one of the most contagious viruses in the word. Vaccines are an essential tool to keep children and adults safe and healthy,' Stack said. The growing challenge of measles comes as a notorious vaccine skeptic has just become the top US health official. Robert F Kennedy Jr, the health secretary, founded the anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense and has aired debunked conspiracy theories that childhood vaccinations are linked to autism. Kennedy made his first public appearance in the top health role on Wednesday at a cabinet meeting with Donald Trump in the White House. He said that the measles epidemic was being followed by the government 'every day', but then appeared to try to minimize the seriousness of the spread. 'It's not unusual. We have measles outbreaks every year,' he said.
