SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio has its first confirmed case of the measles, a spokesperson for University Health System said Wednesday.
The case was confirmed in an outpatient and the information was turned over to the Metropolitan Health District.
The Texas Department of State Health Services is reporting this case as the 10th case of measles in the state this year.
DSHS said the patient was visiting Guadalupe County from the Philippines, where there is an ongoing measles outbreak.
Measles is an airborne virus that lives in the nose and throat mucus of an infected person and can be spread through coughing and sneezing.
Symptoms include:
- High fever
- Runny nose
- Cough
- Red, watery eyes
- Sore throat followed by a rash breakout three to five days after symptoms begin
Measles is prevented through the combination measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine.
Measles is highly contagious, and if one person has it, 9 out of 10 people around that person will also become infected if they have not yet been vaccinated, officials said. About 1 out of 4 people who get measles will be hospitalized.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that children get two doses in order to be fully protected.
The first dose is administered at between 12 through 15 months of age and the second dose at between 4 and 6 years of age.
Click here to read more about the viral infection.
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