Measles in Minnesota: Child hospitalized and second home isolation

Local health officials said two children in Minnesota had contracted measles, among whom the illness was severe enough to require hospitalization.

Young people, both under the age of five, began showing signs of the disease shortly after returning from an unknown country where “measles is common”.

While one child is in the hospital emergency room, the second is currently in isolation at home.

Neither had been vaccinated against the disease, and both lived in Hennepin County, which includes Minneapolis.

The World Health Organization says unvaccinated children are at “higher risk” for measles. The figures show that one in 300 American children will die from the disease.

Measles has been eradicated in the United States for nearly 20 years, thanks to a comprehensive immunization program. Worldwide, however, the disease continues to circulate in a handful of countries, including Brazil, India, and parts of West and Central Africa.

The Minnesota Department of Health did not disclose the children’s symptoms.

But in the early stages, it can cause white patches on the tongue and a brown or red “spotted” rash all over the body.

Contacts are ongoing to determine if the disease has spread.

But health officials said, “Children were self-isolating when symptoms started, so exposure was limited to healthcare and family situations.”

The United States offers a two-dose measles vaccine called measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR). There is no single shot option.

The first injection is normally given when the child is 12 to 15 months old, while the booster is given between four and six years old.

Children are not considered fully protected against measles until they receive both doses.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says about 99 out of 100 affected people are immune to measles.

Measles is one of the most contagious diseases in the world – more so than Covid – and is transmitted by coughing, speaking and even in the same room as a sick person.

Early symptoms include a high fever, cough, runny nose and watery eyes, followed by a rash that usually spreads from the head to the rest of the body.

The CDC and WHO say the disease is more severe in children.

About one in 20 children who get the disease develops pneumonia, while one in 1,000 children develops brain swelling that can lead to seizures and even hearing loss.

Overall, about one in five people who get measles are hospitalized with the disease.

Patients are also at risk for long-term complications, including a deadly nervous system disease called subacute sclerosing panencephalitis.

Since measles has been eradicated from the country, it is now very rare in the United States.