Health officials warn of possible measles exposures in Montgomery County

Health officials are working to identify and contact all Montgomery County residents who may have been exposed to a measles patient.

Officials said a Philadelphia patient, who was exposed to measles, visited two healthcare providers in Montgomery County last week.

There are currently eight confirmed cases in Philadelphia and no confirmed cases in Montgomery County.

Where measles exposures occurred

The Office of Public Health is working to contact people who may have been exposed at the following places and times:

Holy Redeemer Pediatric Urgent Care-Meadowbrook
1648 Huntingdon Pike, Meadowbrook, PA 19046
January 3, between 3:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Jefferson Abington Hospital Emergency Department
1200 Old York Road, Abington, PA 19001
January 3, between 7 p.m. and 9:40 p.m.

Officials said it's important to remember that not everyone who was at these sites on the dates and times above was exposed. The Health Department or the facility will contact you if you were exposed.

What are the symptoms of measles?

Health officials said measles is an extremely contagious virus. Each person who has measles can infect dozens of others and symptoms usually appear about a week or two after being infected.

The first symptoms are usually, high fever, cough, runny nose, red water eyes or pinkeye. After a few days, health officials said more symptoms can appear. Those symptoms are:

• Koplik spots, which are tiny white spots that can appear in the mouth.
• Measles rash, which usually begins as flat spots that appear on the face at the hairline and spread downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs, and feet.
• An even higher fever, which can present when the rash appears.
• In people with lighter skin colors, the rash can appear red. In people with darker skin colors, the redness may be harder to see, or it may appear purple or darker than surrounding skin. 

What to do if you may have been exposed to measles?

Officials recommend that anyone who may have been exposed to measles should quarantine themselves by staying home and away from others for 21 days following exposure.

If you have not received both doses of measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, health officials recommend talking to your healthcare provider about getting fully vaccinated.

People are immune to measles if they:

• Were born before 1957.
• Have already had measles.
• Have received two doses of measles-containing vaccine (usually given as measles, mumps, and rubella — or MMR — vaccine) and aren’t immune-compromised.

Health officials said you should take precautions if you may have been exposed and aren’t immune to measles. This includes infants under the age of 12–15 months, who typically haven’t been vaccinated yet. If you or your child aren’t immune, you should:

• Contact your healthcare provider or pediatrician right away, especially if you don’t feel well. Tell your doctor about your possible measles exposure.
• Alert your healthcare provider before visiting. Tell them that you’ve been exposed to measles and ask them to call the health department.
• Stay home. You could give measles to vulnerable people, so you must quarantine.