More than 5,000 measles cases nationwide, how many are in Southern Colorado?
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — As of today, there are more than 5,000 cases of measles in the country, the most the country has seen in 35 years.
Earlier this week, the Colorado Department of Health informed the public that there was a confirmed case of measles in Weld County.
There have not been any reported cases in Southern Colorado (El Paso, Teller and Pueblo Counties).
The state has been relatively safe, with only 27 confirmed cases, which is a lot less than its next-door state, Utah.
According to reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Utah has over 500 cases, which is always at risk of increasing.
“It’s one of the most contagious infections that we know of. It spreads through the air, and the virus can remain up in the air for two hours after an infected person has left the room,” Dr. Ryan Westdaard from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine said.
Symptoms are the same as the common flu, such as high fever, runny nose, and coughing for the first few days.
Later on, they progress to a rash that moves from the head to the rest of the body.
“As long as we have unvaccinated communities, which are a lot at the hyper-local level, it’s just going to keep happening unless we get vaccination up,” Jennifer Nuzzo from the Brown University of Public Health said.
Out of the 27 confirmed cases in Colorado, the Department of Health reports that 23 of them did not have the vaccine.
Officials say if you think you might have symptoms or have been exposed to measles, call your health care provider, urgent care, or emergency department before going in. Doing this will help prevent the spread.
Click here to follow the original article.