News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Putnam County remains in the clear from the Tennessee measles outbreak.
Director of the Putnam County Health Department Lisa Bumbalough said people can prevent measles with vaccinations.
“The best protection against measles, of course, is to be protected by the MMR vaccine. Which is the Measles Mumps and Rubella vaccine,” Bumbalough said. “Most teens and adults should be up to date but you would want to check with your provider that you do have an immunity of the disease.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to monitor the measles outbreak across 21 states, including Tennessee. The CDC has reported 107 measles cases across the nation so far this year.
“Measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000, thankfully to this effective vaccination program,” Bumbalough said. “But we are still seeing measles in other parts of the world that does not have the great protection we have. ”
According to the CDC, travelers with measles continue to bring the disease into the U.S. and infects unvaccinated people.
Bumbalough said measles can cause major health problems in children and adults, especially children under five years of age.
“Well, it is very contagious so measles spreads through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. You can get the measles by just being in a room with a person that has had measles,” Bumbalough said. “Or if they have been in the room even up to two hours after that person has left. And what is scary is that about 1 in 4 people in the US who get measles end up being hospitalized.”
Measles commonly starts with a fever and develops into a rash and cough, Bumbalough said.
“The rash is tiny red spots that will actually break out starting at the head and then spreads down to the rest of the body. The symptoms begin to appear eight to twelve days after exposure to the virus. The rash usually starts around fourteen days after exposure,” Bumbalough said. “Some people think measles is just a little rash and fever that clears up in a few days but measles can cause serious health complications.”
