ATLANTA — A person from metro Atlanta has been confirmed to have measles, making them the fourth case in the state.
The Department of Public Health said the unvaccinated person had been traveling internationally between May 10 and May 18 and caught the virus.
As of Friday, there had been 1,024 confirmed measles cases across the U.S. amid an outbreak of the virus, with Texas seeing the vast majority of cases.
What you need to know about the measles vaccine
The best way to avoid getting the virus is by getting the measles vaccine.
The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old, and the second between 4 and 6 years old.
Getting another MMR shot as an adult is harmless if there are concerns about waning immunity, the CDC says. People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in the 1960s don’t need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective vaccine made from “killed” virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said.
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People who have documentation that they had measles are immune, and those born before 1957 generally don’t need the shots because so many children got measles back then that they have “presumptive immunity.”
Measles has a harder time spreading through communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — due to “herd immunity.” But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.
What are the symptoms of measles?
Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.
Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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