Knox Co. measles outbreak traced to Amish traveling to Philippines
The largest measles outbreak in America since 1996 has arrived on Richland County's doorstep.
Knox Co. measles outbreak traced to Amish traveling to Philippines The largest measles outbreak in America since 1996 has arrived on Richland County's doorstep. Check out this story on marionstar.com: http://ohne.ws/1gXPDCR
Todd Hill Published 2:12 p.m. ET April 25, 2014
Sixteen confirmed cases of the highly contagious disease have showed up around the Knox County village of Danville, less than 20 miles south of Richland County. Four members of an Amish community there recently traveled to the Philippines, and are believed to have infected family members with the measles upon their return.
The travelers were not vaccinated against the measles, a disease characterized by a bright rash, and the Philippines is currently grappling with a measles epidemic that has afflicted about 20,000 people there, killing at least 50.
Health officials in Richland and surrounding counties are now wasting no time in attempting to get ahead of the outbreak here.
"We sent four of our nurses down there today to do immunization work. We always work very well together. Any resources we have we share," Mary Derr, chief epidemiologist for Richland Public Health, said.
The Knox County Health Department had a free public MMR (mumps, measles and rubella) vaccination clinic in Danville yesterday, while another took place in Holmes County, where some of the sick have been treated. The Ashland County-City Health Department has a walk-in clinic scheduled for1 to 5 p.m. Monday at 1763 Ohio 60.
Derr said Richland Public Health always offers an MMR vaccine, which is about 97 percent effective at preventing measles, mumps and rubella and kicks in after a few weeks.
Although measles was largely considered eliminated in the U.S. by 2000, since 2010 there have been about 160 cases in the country annually. So far this year there have been 129 in 13 states, with Ohio now the latest.
"I have heard the CDC (U.S. Centers for Disease Control) is very concerned about adding another state to the mix," Derr said.
"Vaccines are one of history's most successful public health tools for preventing serious disease and death. Unfortunately, our success also means that many parents don't fully appreciate the importance of childhood immunizations, because they have never witnessed the diseases," Jackie Fletcher, director of nursing at the Knox County Health Department, said.
"These recent outbreaks are a good reminder that diseases like measles are only a plane ride away."
Most of the measles cases in the U.S. so far this year have been in New York City and California, and many of those who came down with the disease had been to the Philippines. Several cases in California were contracted in health-care settings.
The four people from the Danville area went to the Philippines on a trip sponsored by Christian Aid Ministries, an Amish group based in Berlin, Ohio. Although the organization has several more such missions planned, the suspected measles outbreak has reportedly altered those plans.
Nationwide, more than 95 percent of kindergarten-aged children have been vaccinated against the measles, although the number of those not vaccinated has grown in recent years with some parents opposed to vaccines for religious reasons or because of unproven allegations that they cause autism.
The percentage of vaccinated people in Amish and Mennonite communities is much lower than the U.S. average, although there have been reports that Amish families in Knox County flocked to clinics this week to become inoculated against the measles.
The disease, which features several flu-like symptoms, can lead to a variety of complications, from pneumonia to hearing loss and seizures, Derr said. Its fatality rate, according to the CDC, is 15 percent, with 25 percent of patients experiencing neurological damage.
"People who have these symptoms should stay home so they don't spread the disease. Measles is highly contagious and can be spread to others from four days before to four days after the rash appears," Fletcher said.
U.S. travelers to the Philippines are currently not required to obtain any vaccinations, although common ones such as the MMR are recommended by the CDC, while the agency advises vaccines against hepatitis A and typhoid as well because of contaminated food and water supplies in that country.
Meanwhile, a mumps outbreak that began on the Columbus campus of The Ohio State University earlier this year has now spread to 273 cases in 12 Ohio counties, including Licking and Marion. Although there has been one probable mumps patient in Richland County, there have been no confirmed cases here, Derr said.
thill3@nncogannett.com
Twitter: @ToddHillMNJ
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