As measles outbreaks grow and spread across the U.S., a local infectious disease doctor says that the Northern Virginia area is still in good shape. She does, however, want to make sure people have the facts on how to protect themselves.
The number of cases in outbreaks nationwide is coming up on 600 cases, including more than 500 in Texas. It’s at the point where even Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines, is recommending people get the measles inoculation.
Here’s what Dr. Sujata Ambardar, an infectious disease physician at Inova Fairfax Hospital, wants people in Northern Virginia to know about measles.
Is NoVA Safe?
“There is not any measles outbreak” in the DC area, says Ambardar. “There are not any increased cases, as far as I am aware of.”
That doesn’t mean she and her team aren’t getting ready, “just because you don’t know when things will happen, and oftentimes this area is kind of a hub of activity for a lot of infections.”
There have been a few cases in the area, including in Howard County and in DC, but Ambardar says, “They’re basically in a normal variation in this area — I mean, we do see occasional cases. So having a few cases is significant, but not enough that we’re going to panic or feel there’s an outbreak — nothing like there is in the states where there’s outbreaks.”
What Causes Measles Outbreaks?
The most obvious explanation for the outbreaks across the country is growing resistance to vaccines, multiplied by the increase in spring travel. Naturally, a vaccination is Ambardar’s first suggestion for how people should protect themselves. She adds that measles is more contagious than most other airborne infections.
“If you have one person with measles in a room, 90 percent of people will get exposed to measles,” she says — that’s much higher than, for example, tuberculosis. That means a mask isn’t going to help much against the measles, she adds.
A rash, fever, and/or a cough can be the early symptoms of measles. Rhinitis (nasal congestion and itching) and conjunctivitis can also be signs of the disease. “If there is anybody that has symptoms that you see, then you need to be extremely cautious and would try to obviously not be near them,” Ambardar says.
Fortunately, in this area most jurisdictions have “historically been very good about mandating vaccines,” Ambardar says. “And in fact, most colleges won’t let you attend unless you’ve been vaccinated for certain things like measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, Tdap, and even some of the meningococcal vaccines.”
Do I Need a Booster?
Probably not, Ambardar says. She has heard the reports that some people who got vaccinated between 1957 and 1968 “may have gotten vaccines that were inactivated — not a live vaccine — so those people may not have as much of a robust response.”
That doesn’t mean you should go running out for a booster, she says. If you’re truly concerned about your protection against measles infection, she recommends getting a titer test. A titer is a blood test that will show whether you have immunity, either through vaccination or by previously having had the disease. “I actually keep [mine] in my desk,” Ambardar says, “because it’s positive, so I never have to get tested again. I would never need a booster.”
The bar may be higher for health care workers, she says — they should get their titers checked to be sure. But for the general population, if you’ve been safe, you still should be. “Only if the blood test is negative would I get a booster,” Ambardar says. “Not because it’s an unsafe vaccine, but why get a vaccine if you don’t need it?”
“The only time they recommend a booster, they’re saying, is if there’s an outbreak ongoing,” Ambaradar says — if you have incomplete protection and an outbreak is raging, they won’t want to wait until everyone’s titers come back from the lab. “But we’re not in that situation here in the DMV, so I think it’s better just to get a titer if there’s any concern.”
Feature image, stock.adobe.com
