Another potential measles exposure is being investigated in Northern Virginia after someone with a confirmed case of the virus traveled through Dulles International Airport last week.
According to the Virginia Department of Health, the person went through Dulles’ Concourse A and the baggage area between 7:45 p.m. and 11:59 p.m. on June 19.
That person then headed through the departures area of the main terminal, east security checkpoint, on transportation to Concourse C and inside Concourse C between 8 p.m. and 11:59 p.m.
VDH said the person was an international traveler visiting North Carolina.
“If you were at these locations at the same time as this case, it’s important to make sure that you’re protected against measles, and so that would mean verifying your vaccination history, or that you have other proof of measles immunity,” Meredith Robinson, Vaccine Preventable Disease Coordinator at the Virginia Department of Health told WTOP’s Linh Bui.
Officials are working to figure out who might have been exposed and contacting passengers on specific flights.
“If you are not able to verify that you are immune to measles, it’s really important to contact your local health department right away so that you can be; so that you can discuss options for post exposure treatment, which can be given within six days of an exposure,” Robinson said.
So far this year, VDH said there have been three reported cases of measles.
Measles is defined as “a highly contagious viral respiratory disease that spreads easily through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes,” DC Health said.
The latest measles information from VDH is available online.
Nationwide, there have been close to 1,200 confirmed measles cases this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With the rise in measles cases, the CDC is urging all people traveling internationally to be fully vaccinated against the disease.
Measles symptoms typically begin seven to 21 days after an exposure.
“Symptoms typically begin with a high fever and a with a high fever, red, watery, cough and runny nose, and a few days later, progresses to a rash that begins on the face and spreads downward,” Robinson said.
She said if it’s less than seven days, it’s unlikely to be measles.
