2 new pediatric cases of measles in the Central Valley: Health experts send a message

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Two pediatric cases of measles have been confirmed in Tulare County.

The county’s public health department says they were siblings, both under five years old, and unvaccinated. The Tulare County Deputy Health Officer says they were experiencing a fever, a runny nose, and a rash.

“Prevention through vaccination is the only effective way,” said Dr. Thomas Overton, Tulare County’s Deputy Health Officer. Overton tells YourCentralValley.com that there’s no specific treatment for measles.

“One out of three children out of 1,000 can end up dying from this disease,” said Leticia Bereber, health educator at the Fresno County Department of Public Health. Children under five years old and adults over 20 years old are the ones most at risk.

Common symptoms include a high fever, cough, a runny nose, and a rash.

“That rash starts on your hairline. It doesn’t start on your neck. It starts on your hairline and comes down your body,” Berber added.

The Tulare County Health Department is actively working on identifying and tracing any potential exposures.  

“Making sure that none of the contacts have any measles symptoms as well,” Overton explained. 

As of July 21, there have been 18 confirmed measles cases this year in California, two of which were in Fresno County back in March. 

“One individual that traveled out of the country and became infected with measles. When he arrived back, he came back with symptoms. After that, he infected another individual,” Berber said.

Neither of the adults was vaccinated. 

Berber reminds that this vaccine is mandatory for school-aged children in California.

“They need their first two doses of measles before they start kindergarten,” she added.

Children are eligible as soon as 12 months old for their first dose, but Berber says for those traveling to an area with a measles outbreak, children as young as six months can receive the vaccine.