Measles Cases Reported Among 16 States Including Michigan
SOUTHFIELD (WWJ) - Cases of the measles seem to be on the rise and Michigan is one of the 16 states reporting new cases since mid-August.
Nationally, measles cases have more than doubled.
In Michigan, there have been two reported cases involving babies who were exposed while traveling out of the country.
Both have recovered since.
Doctors say that progress against measles may be threatened by a high number of foreign cases along with a drop in immunization rates.
Also known as rubeola, the disease can be serious and, at times, fatal for small children.
Signs of measles can appear seven to 14 days after exposure to the virus.
Symptoms include fever, dry cough, runny nose, sore throat, conjunctivitis, sensitivity to light, tiny white spots with bluish-white centers found inside the mouth on the inner lining of the cheek and a skin rash that is large with flat blotches.
The cause for measles is a virus that lives in the mucus in the throat and nose of an infected child or adult.
Individuals who are infected are contagious from four days before the rash appears to four days after.