HOUSTON, Texas – With the number of new measles cases steadily increasing in Texas, we wanted to ensure you knew what to do if you ever felt you were experiencing an outbreak.
On Tuesday, Texas state health officials announced that 20 new measles cases were discovered, bringing the total number to 279 across 11 counties, mostly in west Texas.
Recommended Videos
A total of 36 people in Texas have been hospitalized.
Measles spreads through the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks. By touching the contaminated surface, and then touching your eyes, nose or mouth, you can become affected.
What are the symptoms of measles?
Measles first infects the respiratory tract, and then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes, and a rash.
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs, and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.
Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling, and death.
So, if you think you’ve contracted measles, here’s what you need to do:
Measles typically starts with cough, runny nose, and red eyes and often leads to a rash and fever over 101 degrees Fahrenheit. If you think you have measles, get medical care. Symptoms can become worse over time, complications can develop, and measles can be deadly if you don’t receive appropriate care. If you have any of these symptoms, go to the emergency room immediately:
- A hard time breathing or breathing faster than normal
- Signs of severe dehydration (dry nose and mouth, urinating less than usual)
- Confusion, decreased alertness, or severe weakness
- For young children: a blue color around the mouth, crying without making tears, unusually low energy, or severe loss of appetite
Have someone call the ER to let them know a person with measles is coming in so they can see you away from other patients.
How to prevent measles:
- The best way to prevent measles is to be vaccinated with two doses of a measles-containing vaccine. This is primarily administered as the MMR vaccine.
- The MMR vaccine protects against measles, mumps, and rubella.
- Two doses prevent more than 97% of measles infections.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
