Measles outbreak noted among travelers

CDC. MMWR. 2011;60;397-400.

An outbreak in Minnesota and patients across various other states are leading to rapidly increasing totals of measles, according to data from state and federal health officials.

Minnesota health officials are reporting 15 confirmed cases of measles, 13 of which have been linked to a case that acquired infection in Kenya. One patient acquired infection in Florida and one case acquired infection in India, health officials said in a press release.

In other parts of the country, during the first 2 months of 2011, 13 cases of measles were reported to the CDC, all of which were from travelers returning from overseas, according to data derived from the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System.

In Minnesota, patients have ranged in age from 4 months to 51 years. Five of the patients were too young to receive vaccine, six were of age but were not vaccinated, one was vaccinated and three have unknown vaccine status. There have been eight hospitalizations and no deaths.

CDC researchers said there were 692 cases of measles during the study period of 2001 and February 2011. Among this group, 292 people contracted illness outside the United States, and more than half of these were in residents of the United States. Of those cases, 47 were in children aged 6 to 23 months. The cases in young children are of special concern because children are at greater risk for severe complications associated with measles, such as subacute sclerosing panencephalitis.

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