Well, the measles outbreak keeps on ruining everything decent in the world as authorities now are warning that the first known patient in Orange County, California went to a midnight screening of Avengers: Endgame before she knew she had measles.
Right now, what we know is that the woman in question lives in Placentia, California, and health officials are warning people that people in the area may have been may have been exposed to measles, according to the Los Angeles Times:
“Officials say people who were at the following locations should review their vaccination history and also monitor themselves for measles symptoms:
“5 Hutton Centre Drive, Santa Ana, between 7:45 a.m. and 7:15 p.m. on April 23, 24 and 25.
“AMC movie theater, 1001 S. Lemon St., Fullerton, from 11 p.m. April 25 to 4 a.m. April 26.
“St. Jude Medical Center emergency department, 101 E. Valencia Mesa Drive, Fullerton, from 7 to 9 a.m. April 27.”
The woman reportedly caught the disease while traveling abroad in a country experiencing an outbreak. Gizmodo says that California is among the states hit hardest by the recent measles outbreak, with the CDC confirming 38 cases of measles in California as of April 24.
The CDC reported that over 500 of the 704 reported measles cases were in patients who hadn’t been vaccinated, though it’s unknown whether that’s the case in this instance. Some publications have reported that if you were born before 1989, it might be in your best interest to get a measles booster shot if you want to feel more secure, because the guidelines from ’89 onward were for two doses, which gives you a 97% chance of being protected against measles. Still, one dose is already about 93% effective at preventing the disease. The bigger problem is accidentally spreading it to young children or people with weakened immune systems.
The Los Angeles Times reports,
“’Measles is a highly contagious and potentially severe disease that causes fever, rash, cough and red, watery eyes,’” said Orange County interim health officer Dr. Nichole Quick in a statement. “’The MMR vaccine is a simple, inexpensive and very effective measure to prevent the spread of this serious virus.'”
Considering that this is one of the biggest movie events of the year, the theater was packed with people of all ages, so there’s no way of knowing just how many people (and especially children) were affected by this. It’s a truly depressing situation, and considering this is happening in major cities, the fear of it spreading can easily make its way into paranoia, but when it comes down to it, the best way to handle this outbreak is to make sure you are vaccinated yourself. For parents of young children, it’s important to know the signs and make sure that the school/daycare you send them to asks for up-to-date medical records from parents.
Dr. Nancy Messonnier said at a news conference, “The longer this continues, the greater the chances that measles will again get a foothold in the United States.”
For the first time, without snark, I think this gif really applies:
(image: Fox)
(via Gizmodo, image: Mark Kegans/Getty Images)
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