LA County confirms measles case, person passing through LAX, amid rising U.S. infections
Los Angeles County confirmed its first case of measles since 2020, involving a resident who traveled internationally in late January.
The infected person, whose age and identity weren’t made public, traveled on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul to Los Angeles International Airport on Jan. 25 at 5 p.m. Since the disease is highly contagious and particles linger in the air for hours, the county Department of Public Health said in a news release Thursday that anyone who was in Terminal B, between 5 and 9 p.m. Pacific that day, may have been exposed to the sick traveler. Local health officials said they were working with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to notify passengers who were seated near the person on the flight.
The California patient is the latest in a spate of recent measles cases around the country that prompted a CDC alert last week to health providers to check for the disease. The highly infectious virus is often caught by young people eligible for the vaccine who did not receive before traveling abroad, the CDC said. Measles cases are also rising globally.
The virus can cause serious issues and is potentially deadly for people who aren’t vaccinated or immune to it.
“Measles is spread by air and by direct contact even before you know you have it and can lead to severe disease,” Dr. Muntu Davis, the LA County health officer, said in a statement.
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After leaving the airport, the infected person then went to a Chick-Fil-A in Northridge, California, between 8 and 10:30 p.m., health officials said. The public health department is continuing to investigate other areas the person visited.
The initial symptoms, which usually show up a week or two after exposure, include high fever, runny nose and cough, followed by a hyper-pigmented or red-colored rash at the hairline that moves down a person’s body. About one in 1,000 people with measles develop brain swelling, and one to three in every thousand die, according to the CDC.
LA health officials urged anyone in the vicinity of the infected person during the relevant periods to review their immunization and medical records to ensure they received their measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. People who are pregnant, have an infant or have a weakened immune system or aren’t immune, should contact their health provider. If symptoms develop, officials said people should stay at home and reach out to a health provider prior to visiting a hospital or clinic, so that officials there are properly prepared.
LA County last saw five measles cases in 2020, and an outbreak of 20 cases in 2019. Most were in people who were not immunized or didn’t know whether they had ever been immunized or previously infected with measles.
A 2021-22 school year report by the state of California found about 96.7% of LA County kindergartners received their full MMR vaccine series. The national coverage for the vaccine among kindergartners was 93.1% in 2022-23, leaving about 250,000 kindergartners at risk of the disease.
Eduardo Cuevas covers health and breaking news for USA TODAY. He can be reached at EMCuevas1@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: LA's first measles case since 2020 is traveler passing through at LAX
