Measles outbreak in Michigan: This is who's most vulnerable
A measles outbreak is spreading across a Washington county known for choosing not to vaccinate its children, and health officials have declared a public health emergency. USA TODAY
Editor's note: This story has been updated to include five new confirmed Michigan measles cases reported Friday evening by the state Department of Health and Human Services.
Dr. Matthew Hornik worries most about the babies and the sickest kids who come to his West Bloomfield practice, the children who can't get vaccinated because they have other medical conditions that affect their immune systems.
They are, he said, the most vulnerable in the state's worst measles outbreak in 28 years. So far this year in Michigan, there have been 39 confirmed measles cases. Of them, 38 are in Oakland County and one case was reported in Wayne County. The last time there were this many infections was 1991, when the state reported 65 cases.
Among the most recent cases is an 8-month-old baby, too young for the first dose of the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine, which is typically administered first when a child is between 12 and 15 months old and then given a second dose between ages 4 and 6. Two doses of the vaccine, health officials say, is a person's best protection from the virus.
"Those most at risk are going to be little babies and the people who are medically unable to (be vaccinated). It's also people who are undergoing chemotherapy and immunosuppressed people," Hornik said — both children and adults.
The virus is highly contagious, and can be spread through person-to-person contact and through the air, mostly when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It can remain in the air for two hours after a person with measles leaves the room.
"Let's say one person walks into my office with measles, now that virus can live in the air for two hours and then three babies under 6 months old come in for their well visits and they could potentially get measles," he said. "That’s the concern that we have, and why in fact they’re telling people not to go to their doctor’s offices if they have concerns about measles."
Instead, health officials urge people with measles symptoms to call ahead to get instructions about how to get treated without infecting others.
"That’s what’s going to keep spreading this more and more," Hornik said. "This number is going to keep going up and up. I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of this yet, unfortunately."
Measles complications can be serious, and sometimes deadly.
“Some people think of measles as just a little rash and fever that clears up in a few days, but measles can cause serious health complications, especially in children younger than 5 years of age," said Luanne Thomas Ewald, CEO of Children’s Hospital of Michigan and chairperson of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association’s Council on Children’s Health in a statement earlier this week announcing that 11 Michigan hospital systems that are part of the Council on Children's Health are urging parents to vaccinate their children.
Complications of measles include ear infections, diarrhea, pneumonia and encephalitis (swelling of the brain) that can cause convulsions, deafness or intellectual disability, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
About 1 in 20 children with measles gets pneumonia, which is the most common cause of death from measles in young children. And 1 or 2 out of every 1,000 kids who contract measles die from it, the CDC reports.
Outbreak hits close to home
That's what is most worrisome to Chris and Emily Zoladz of Rockford, a small town north of Grand Rapids, who have three children.
Their youngest son, 10-month-old Ari, was not vaccinated for measles because the immunization is generally not given to babies younger than 12 months old.
"We've been following the news because ... I'm always keeping tabs on what's happening back home," said Chris Zoladz, who is 37 and grew up in Commerce Township. "I saw the news about the measles outbreak, and noticed it's one, then it's two, 