United States: The Texas Department of State Health and Services (DSHS) fights an escalating measles outbreak whose numbers have increased by nearly fifty percent in the last two weeks.
More about the news
Officials announced additional cases would emerge after the first report appeared on February 5 in Gaines County.
“Due to the highly contagious nature of this disease, additional cases are likely to occur in Gaines County and the surrounding communities,” the official alert mentioned.
This outbreak exhibits the worst case numbers that have occurred during the past several decades, while measles now continues to spread within New Mexico, Fox News reported.
What more are the officials stating?
The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) tested new residents and confirmed three additional cases, which increased their total number to eight.
The outbreak conforms to the outbreak definition by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through the occurrence of three unrelated cases in Lea County, which borders Gaines County.
Tests for connecting the New Mexico outbreak to its close geographic position have failed to produce any conclusive results.
According to Dr. Chad Smelser, NMDOH Deputy State Epidemiologist, “We are investigating every suspected case, and we encourage sick individuals with symptoms consistent with measles to seek medical care,” Fox News reported.
Less vaccination, more infection cases
Among all cases, six out of eight individuals have not received the vaccination.
The group contains four adults with four minors. Adults represent four of the eight people who contracted the illness, and these adults claim to remember receiving their childhood vaccines.
NMDOH has performed notifications of potential exposure victims while providing cautionary advice.
The organization has issued an official announcement that includes places together with their specific timeframes to notify people about exposure risks.
Lea County operates five public health vaccination clinics throughout the next two weeks, where vaccine shots are provided without appointments.