Clay County Public Health nurses Liz Bjur, Cheryl Sapp and public health administrator Kathy McKay.

Nancy Edmonds Hanson

Measles is coming to Moorhead. With Fargo’s first two cases identified late last week, the highly contagious virus is highly likely to show up in coming days.
“It’s not ‘if,’ but ‘when,’” Clay County public health administrator Kathy McKay said Monday. “It was in 31 states as of last week, with reports of 1,001 cases, 11 in North Dakota. Two had been confirmed so far in Minnesota.” The majority of the infected are children and teens.
Nurses Cheryl Sapp and Liz Bjur, both on the health department staff, agree. “Now that it’s in the community, it can spread very quickly,” Sapp observed. “The virus is airborne. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it can remain in the air for two hours.”
Measles has been a stranger here for almost 70 years. After the introduction of the highly effective MMR vaccine in 1957, the once-endemic childhood disease has become a rare novelty, along with mumps and rubella. It has been considered eradicated throughout the U.S. since 2000. But, McKay points out, due to falling rates of childhood vaccination, it’s making headlines once again. Nationwide, rates have been falling. Only 88% of today’s 13-year-olds have been immunized. In Minnesota, it is even lower – just 76%, the fourth lowest vaxx rate in the country.
“Most people who were born before 1957 have already had the disease, so they’re considered immune,” Sapp says. “The CDC recommends another dose now for adults born after the vaccine was introduced, along with those who haven’t been vaccinated previously.”
Healthy children can usually fight measles on their own. But it does pose more serious risks. According to the Minnesota Department of Health, one in five of those who contract the virus needs hospitalization due to complications. They are more common in children under 5, says McKay, and include diarrhea, dehydration, ear infections, pneumonia and acute encephalitis. In three cases out of 1,000, the infection results in death.
McKay urges vigilant parents to watch their children for symptoms. The first is not the itchy spots most commonly associated with measles. Instead, they include coughing, a runny nose and fever as high as 103 degrees. “Then, two or three days later, the rash appears,” she continues. “It begins at the hairline, moves to the face and upper neck, and then spreads down the body. It can also appear on the arms and legs.
“Don’t scratch!” she cautions, “or there can be scarring.”
The measles virus is infectious from four days before the rash appears until four days after. Bed rest and lots of fluids are recommended, along with analgesics like acetominophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) to reduce the fever. They increase comfort but do not cure, the nurses point out. Sapp emphasizes, “There is no cure. It has to run its course.”
If you suspect your child has measles, the county nurses say, you should seek medical advice immediately. But going to the doctor unprepared can cause problems of its own, given measles’ highly contagious nature. Both cases reported in Fargo are linked to exposure in clinic waiting rooms.
“Call first,” Bjur recommends, “and talk to the nurse about your concerns.” She also suggests calling the 24-hour My Sanford Nurse line at 1-877-473-1215 or Essentia’s Nurse Care Line, 1-800-714-4646 or locally 701-364-8900.
“And when you go in, you must wear a mask,” Sapp urges. The virus remains airborne for hours.
Quarantining is required for 21 days, both for those with confirmed cases and unvaccinated individuals who have been exposed. If you’ve been immunized with the MMR vaccine, however, you need not isolate. “Just watch for symptoms to be safe,” McKay says. “If you’ve had the shots, infection is highly unlikely.”
The best way to sidestep the risk of measles, the three agree, is clearly vaccination. “The MMR vaccine is safe and effective,” McKay states flatly. “It has been used safely for almost 70 years! Despite the misinformation on the internet, there is no link between vaccination and autism.
“On the other hand, measles is a dangerous and highly contagious disease. Vaccination is absolutely the best way to prevent it.”