S.C. measles outbreak reaches 76; vast majority of patients are kids

COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina health officials are reporting 14 new measles cases since Friday in an ongoing outbreak.

The latest cases announced Tuesday bring the total in the Upstate outbreak to 76 and overall cases to 79 in the state for the year.

Eight of the new cases resulted from the previously reported exposure at the Way of Truth Church in Inman, and three of the new cases were exposed in a school setting. The other three are still under investigation.

There are currently 134 individuals in quarantine and one in isolation.

Based on the new cases, the South Carolina Department of Public Health has identified public exposures at four schools, which began notifying potentially exposed students, faculty and staff Monday.

Those schools are Hendrix Elementary (40 students in quarantine), Marby Middle School (13 students in quarantine), Chapman High School (5 students in quarantine) and Tyger River Elementary School (17 students in quarantine). Students from those schools should be able to return to class between Dec. 11 and Dec. 15, depending on the school.

All students at previously identified sources of school exposures have returned to school.

Of the 76 measles patients in the outbreak, only eight are 18 or older. The rest are minors, including at least 14 under 5 years old and 49 between 5 and 17 years old. The ages are not known for five of the patients who are under 18.

What if you’re exposed?

Notifying a health care provider of a potential exposure before seeking care is very important, experts say. This allows prior arrangements to be made in clinical settings to prevent additional exposures of staff and other visitors as some clinical sites have also been settings of public exposures.

“Keep in mind, measles is highly contagious,” said Conway Medical Center Chief Medical Officer Dr. Paul Richardson.

Richardson said the symptoms mimic those of any viral infection, with the addition of a rash. In most cases, he said, it is not life-threatening.

“The good news is that for a vast majority of patients, it’s a self-limiting illness,” Richardson says. “The bad news is, though, for those small cases who do contract it, it can lead to serious complications, including respiratory failure and things of that nature.”

Richardson says the primary concern is for younger children and elderly people contracting measles because they have more compromised immune systems.

What to expect

Symptoms typically begin a week to 12 days (but up to 21 days) after exposure, and start with a cough, runny nose, and red eyes, along with a mild to moderate fever.

Two or three days later, the fever spikes, often as high as 104. At the same time, a red blotchy rash appears, usually first on the face and head, then rapidly spreads down the remainder of the body.

A person with measles is contagious from four days before the rash appears through four days after its onset, so someone may be able to spread measles before they know they have the disease. It is important to stay home if you are ill.

If anyone who may have been exposed develops an illness with a fever of 101 or more, cough, runny nose or red eyes, with or without rash, immediately call your doctor and let them know about the exposure and symptoms so that they can tell you what to do next.

Your doctor can make special arrangements to evaluate you without putting other patients and medical office staff at risk.

To keep the public updated on the outbreak, there’s a measles outbreak page with information. Officials said the page will be updated by noon on Tuesdays and Fridays.