TRAVERSE CITY — A second case of measles and two possible exposure sites were confirmed by the Grand Traverse County Health Department.
The Chelsea Park West apartment complex off of Hartman Road between June 4-13 and Walmart Super Center, 2640 Crossing Circle, 12:30-3:30 p.m. June 14 are sites where people may have been exposed to measles, according to a health department statement Friday.
People at those locations, at those times, should monitor for symptoms up to 21 days after exposure as the measles virus is highly contagious, spreads through person-to-person contact and can stay airborne up to two hours after an infected person leaves the area, according to the health department.
Symptoms may include high fever (may spike to over 104 degrees F); cough; runny nose; red, watery eyes (conjunctivitis); tiny white spots on the inner cheeks, gums, and roof of the mouth known as Koplik spots; and a red, raised, blotchy rash that usually starts on the face, then spreads to trunk, arms, and legs. Individuals may be contagious for up to four days before the measles rash appears.
The county also opened a measles hotline — 231-995-6800 — that will be staffed from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. during the week. Grand Traverse County residents can also contact 2-1-1.
The health department notice comes near the end of the timeframe where people can receive treatment to prevent illness, as the recommendation is for six days or less from the potential exposure.
The county’s first case of measles was announced June 18 as a close contact with an out-of-state traveler case, not from a public exposure.
The new case is linked to the first one, health department officials said Friday.
“Disease investigations performed by our local health department are critical to ensuring we can limit the impact of diseases such as measles in our community,” said county Health Officer Mike Lahey in the statement, and urged people to stay up-to-date on routine vaccinations, including the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine.
The county hosted a walk-in measles vaccine clinic on Friday, and Lahey called the vaccine “highly effective” in a previous statement that urged people to find out their immunization status, as about 90 percent of those who aren’t vaccinated against measles, and come in contact with it, will become infected.
As of Friday afternoon, the Michigan measles dashboard showed 12 cases in the state, but had not been updated since June 12, and didn’t show Grand Traverse County under active monitoring.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, updated Friday, shows 23 outbreaks and 1,214 confirmed measles cases in the United States so far this year.
CDC numbers also show that 12 percent of cases this year required hospitalization and resulted in three deaths. The largest age group requiring hospitalization are children under 5 years old.
Officials urge those who with measles symptoms to take steps to prevent additional exposures by contacting the doctor, urgent care, or hospital before seeking treatment.