With more than a dozen confirmed cases of measles and over 2000 close contacts identified, health authorities are rushing to stop the current outbreak from spreading any further.
The official number of known cases of measles around New Zealand stands at 14 with cases identified in Northland, Auckland, Taranaki, Nelson, Manawatū and Wellington.
Health authorities have not released the ages of those infected, but at least one teenager is among the group.
Wellington College has confirmed that a Year 11 student from the school had been diagnosed with measles. They were at school between October 13 and 15 and also travelled on the Wellington College school bus No 736 on the mornings of those days.
Auckland Grammar School is also affected. Parents have been told that a person infected with the illness was at the school on Friday, October 24.
They did not say whether the person involved is a student or a staff member, but students in Years 9 and 10 had been in contact with the person and, as a result, they were to stay home while public health officials carried out contact-tracing measures.
According to the World Health Organisation, measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus that can be spread easily when an infected person coughs, breathes or sneezes.
The virus can stay in the air for about an hour. It can also be picked up by contact with surfaces that have been contaminated by an infected person who has sneezed or coughed in the same room, for example.
Measles infects the respiratory tract before spreading throughout the body, WHO says.
“It can cause severe disease, complications and even death.”
Anyone can catch measles. However, it is most common in children and young people.
“Being vaccinated is the best way to prevent getting sick with measles or spreading it to other people. The vaccine is safe and helps your body fight off the virus.”
The Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine is free for anyone aged under 18 and people who are 18 and eligible for free healthcare in NZ.
Getting two doses of the vaccine after 12 months of age protects 99% of people from measles, Health NZ Te Whatu Ora says.
Measles symptoms include a high fever, a cough, a runny nose and a rash all over the body.
If you have had measles before, you are considered immune. You are also immune if you got the recommended two doses of the MMR vaccine after the age of 12 months.
Anyone born in New Zealand before 1969 is also considered likely to be immune, as most people were infected with measles during childhood, given there were no measles vaccines before this.
People can also contact their family doctor or healthcare provider to check their immunisation records. Childhood health books, such as a Plunket book, may also show a written record.
Anyone who is not immune or cannot find evidence that they have received the MMR vaccines can get vaccinated now. However, it is recommended that people discuss this with their doctor, as a blood test can also reveal measles immunity.
Health authorities are also urging people to know the difference between measles and chickenpox.
Measles is more severe and starts with the fever, cough and runny nose, as well as red, itchy eyes. The rash then follows, starting on a person’s face before covering the body.
Chickenpox starts with itchy blisters all over the body and has a fever that is mild to moderate, as well as an occasional mild headache.
On Thursday, Health NZ confirmed details of the latest two cases – a close contact of a previously confirmed case in Auckland and a new case, also in Auckland.
No other information has been released in relation to the new cases, such as their ages or whether they are known to each other.
However, there are a number of new locations of interest connected to the second case.
The locations of interest in Auckland are currently listed under the Casual Contact Locations of Interest list, meaning anyone who was at a listed location is considered to be a casual contact of a person who has had measles.
“Due to their level of exposure to the virus, there is a possibility you could become infected. You should watch out for symptoms and follow the advice for casual contacts.”
People who were at a location of interest as a casual contact should monitor for symptoms for 21 days after the date of exposure.
The latest exposure date involving a person infected with measles out in the community in Auckland is Monday, October 20.
People in the same vicinity as the infected case on that day should look out for measles symptoms until Monday, November 7.
The current Close Contact Locations of Interest – where people are considered to be a close contact of a measles-infected person – do not include any Auckland locations.
There are locations in Wellington, Taranaki, Nelson-Marlborough and Tasman, and Manawatū-Whanganui. People can check the Health NZ Te Whatu Ora website for the full list.
The latest exposure date on this list is Monday, October 20, when an infected person visited Momo Sushi at 116 Devon St West in New Plymouth, between 11.40am and 1pm.
Anyone deemed to be a close contact is told to quarantine for a week after the date of exposure and urgently contact Healthline on 0800 611 116.
“If the quarantine date has already started, stay at home or wherever you are staying. Do not go to school or work until you have been contacted by the public health service. They will let you know what to do,” Health NZ Te Whatu Ora says.
Auckland Grammar School headmaster Tim O’Connor informed parents and students in an email on Thursday night about actions after an infected person was at the school on Friday last week.
“Students in forms 3 and 4 (Years 9 and 10) have been in contact with this person,” he wrote.
“The school has been conferring with the National Public Health Service (Public Health) to develop a plan to reduce the likelihood of measles spreading.”
O’Connor said the school would be closed to all students in Years 9 and 10 while health officials carry out contact-tracing measures.
Vaccination records of those students would be checked and students who do not have records of two doses of the MMR vaccination after the age of 12 months would be identified.
Senior students in Years 11, 12 and 13 were not affected and their examination timetables would continue as normal.
In 2019 and early 2020, before another disease turned the world upside down, New Zealand was in the grips of a measles outbreak not seen in ovfor the first time in more than 20 years. The hardest-hit city was Auckland.
By the end of it, a total of 2199 cases of measles and over 600 hospitalisations had been reported. Two pregnant women who caught measles during that time lost their babies.
The Herald on Sunday ran a front page covered in red dots that illustrated the severity of the situation at the time.
The accompanying caption read: “Every mark on this page represents one of the 937 New Zealanders infected by measles, with the country in the grip of the worst outbreak in 22 years.
“One of those is a baby in a critical condition. Today, the head of Starship Hospital pleads for every Kiwi to help save lives.”
That outbreak would eventually spread to Samoa, where an measles epidemic took hold in the small Pacific Island nation, infecting up to 5700 people.
Devastatingly, 83 people died. The majority of those deaths were babies or young children.
Samoa, which was dealing with a low vaccination rate among babies at the time, is now in a better position to deal with an outbreak, with a huge push for vaccinations in the years since.
However, it did not stop the Samoan Government from issuing public measles alerts – given the situation in New Zealand, as well as Australia, where people regularly travel to and from the islands.
The Cook Islands Government has also issued a travel alert, advising people to take precautionary measures when travelling to New Zealand.
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