More Than 250 People Quarantined in South Carolina Over Measles Outbreak, Officials Say

Authorities in the state confirmed 27 new measles cases in the ongoing outbreak, which started in October.

An electron microscope image of a measles virus particle provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Feb. 4, 2015. Cynthia Goldsmith/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via AP

Officials in South Carolina reported 27 more measles cases in the state as more than 250 people have been quarantined since October.

In a news release issued on Tuesday, the South Carolina Department of Public Health said that the 27 new cases involved exposures at schools, churches, and in homes. Officials also said that one of the cases was exposed in a health care setting.

“There are currently 254 people in quarantine and 16 in isolation,” the state health agency said in a statement. More than 111 people have confirmed to have the measles, a highly contagious virus that is targeted in childhood vaccines.

Forty-three of the people who are in quarantine are students at Inman Intermediate School, it said.

Another 75 of the measles patients in the state are between the ages of 5 and 17, the health department said. It said that 105 of the patients are not vaccinated, three are partially vaccinated, one is fully vaccinated, and two have unknown vaccination statuses.

“Sixteen of the new cases resulted from the previously reported exposure at the Way of Truth Church in Inman, eight of the cases are household members of known cases, one resulted from a previously reported school exposure, one was from an exposure in a health care setting, and the source of exposure is unknown for one of the cases,” the Department of Public Health also said in its statement.

The health department said that people who were possibly exposed to the virus should inform a health care provider. It also said that to stop its spread, people who are confirmed to have the virus with mild illness or who are in quarantine to stay home so as to not expose measles to others.

“A person with measles is contagious from four days before the rash appears through four days after its onset, meaning people with mild symptoms can spread measles before they know they have the disease,” the agency said in the statement, adding that vaccines are “the best way to prevent measles and stop this outbreak.”

According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, once a person contracts measles they are generally protected against the disease thereafter via natural immunity.

The outbreak was confirmed by South Carolina health officials in early October.

Measles Symptoms and Signs

Authorities say measles, a highly infectious virus, generally shows up in two stages. In the first, most people develop a fever higher than 101 degrees Fahrenheit, runny nose, watery red eyes, or cough.

These symptoms generally start seven to 14 days after being exposed. Officials say the second stage of measles starts about two to three days after the initial symptoms. Some people develop what is known as Koplik spots—tiny white spots—inside the mouth, according to the CDC.

Three to five days after the first symptoms begin, the telltale measles rash starts to appear on the patient’s face near the hairline area before it spreads to the rest of the body, spreading downward.

“Small raised bumps may also appear on top of the flat red spots,” and the “spots may become joined together as they spread from the head to the rest of the body,” the CDC says on its website. “When the rash appears, a person’s fever may spike to more than 104 degrees Fahrenheit.”