At least three partially vaccinated children in Central Ohio have contracted measles, marking the first cases in the region's outbreak that have not been among unvaccinated children.
Fifty nine cases had been confirmed as of Dec. 7, according to a dashboard run by the health department in Columbus. All but three of those cases were among unvaccinated children. The ages of the three partially vaccinated children who became infected are unclear, though the city's dashboard said some of the individuals may not have been eligible for their second dose of the measles-mumps-rubella shot due to their age. The CDC recommends children get their first dose of the MMR vaccine between 12 and 15 months, and the second shot between ages 4 and 6.
Three more notes on the outbreak:
1. More than half of cases have occurred among kids younger than 2. Fourteen have occurred among kids 3 to 5, and five of the children are between the ages of 6 and 17.
2. The outbreak has hospitalized 23 patients, who have been seen at Columbus-based Nationwide Children's Hospital, according to CNN. "The mainstay of treatment for all children with measles is supportive care," Matthew Washam, MD, the hospital's medical director of epidemiology and infection control, told CNN.
"In the hospital, this can include intravenous fluids, antibiotics for secondary bacterial infections. Some children with measles may also be treated with vitamin A given the association of lower vitamin A levels with more severe measles illness," he said.
3. Health officials anticipate the outbreak, which the region started investigating in early November, to last for several months. Mysheika Roberts, MD, public health commissioner at the Columbus health department said health officials are "pretty confident" the outbreak is tied to one of four separate cases reported over the summer among individuals who became infected after traveling to a country where the disease is endemic.