After a number of isolated measles cases cropping up, Alberta Health Services (AHS) has announced an outbreak of the disease in Calgary, Edmonton and Central Alberta zones.
There have been 22 confirmed cases in the province this season, six have been in Edmonton, nine in Calgary and seven in central Alberta. Other provinces in Canada have been hit too. In 2014 so far, 288 cases of measles have been confirmed in British Columbia, along with 10 in Saskatchewan and two in Ontario. In 2012, over 120,000 deaths occurred across the globe from the disease, according to the World Health Organization.
Surprisingly, three out of the six people infected in Calgary had already been vaccinated for the disease—although this did make their symptoms less serious than the individuals who hadn’t been vaccinated.
AHS says they will offer an additional dose of the measles vaccine to children between the ages of six months and 12 months old. Parents of children age four and older should consider getting their child the second dose of the vaccine as well, especially if the child is attending school or childcare facilities.
The vaccines are available to:
- Infants (between 6 and 12 months)
- Children (12 months and older) who have not received their first dose of measles vaccine
- Children (4 years and older) who have not received their second dose of measles vaccine
- Individuals, born in 1970 or after, who have not received two doses of measles vaccine
- Health care workers who are not immune to measles
Measles is a highly contagious disease that is spread through contact with mucous from an infected individual’s nose and mouth. In pockets of the population where children remain unvaccinated, the disease can run rampant and gain entry into a larger percentage of the population.
The symptoms of measles are a high fever, irritability, runny nose and sore, red eyes that are sensitive to light. Three to seven days after those symptoms emerge, a rash will develop on the face and begin to spread down the body. Pregnant women, the elderly and children under age 1 are the most vulnerable to the disease.
