A Colorado resident has tested positive for measles this month, marking the state's first case since January 2019, the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment said Dec. 20.
The infected individual is an adolescent who recently traveled internationally. The child, whose vaccination status is unknown, has been in isolation since Dec. 18.
Health officials said potential exposures may have occurred at the Denver International Airport on Dec. 13 and at Children's Hospital Colorado's emergency department in Aurora on Dec. 18.
"One adolescent with confirmed measles was seen as a patient and discharged under isolation precautions," a hospital spokesperson told Becker's Dec. 21.
Children's Hospital Colorado said it is working closely with health officials and notifying healthcare providers and patients who were in the same area of the emergency department to monitor for potential symptoms.
The pandemic spurred major setbacks in global efforts to eliminate measles, with the CDC and World Health Organization now calling the disease an "imminent threat" for every part of the world. Measles cases have increased 18% worldwide in 2022, while deaths jumped 43%, according to the WHO.