![\"Symptoms](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/3e994fad21989b07faecf7baa8c1727aad4fe4d0.jpg\")
Camera IconSymptoms include fever, fatigue, cough, runny nose and sore eyes, followed by a red, non-itchy rash.\u00a0 Credit: Bilanol\/Getty Images\/iStockphoto<\/p>\nHealth authorities have been left baffled after a child admitted to hospital with the measles was not linked to a case reported earlier in the week.<\/p>\n
WA Health said the new case was in a young child who had no known link to the case involving a returned overseas traveller, reported on Wednesday. The child\u2019s case was also not linked to any overseas travel.<\/p>\n
It raises major concerns for health authorities, as a locally acquired case with no known source suggests possible undetected transmission of the highly contagious virus in the community.<\/p>\n
There is so far just one new exposure site at Armadale Hospital\u2019s emergency department.<\/p>\n
Anyone who attended the hospital\u2019s ED on Wednesday between 10.40am and 1.05pm should monitor for symptoms up to 18 days post-exposure.<\/p>\n
Symptoms include fever, fatigue, cough, runny nose and sore eyes, followed by a red, non-itchy rash.<\/p>\n
Camera IconSymptoms include fever, fatigue, cough, runny nose and sore eyes, followed by a red, non-itchy rash.\u00a0 Credit: Bilanol\/Getty Images\/iStockphoto<\/p>\n
The blotchy rash usually starts on the face before spreading to the rest of the body. It can last up to a week.<\/p>\n
Communicable Disease Control director Paul Armstrong said measles is highly infectious and can cause serious illness, particularly in vulnerable groups like young children.<\/p>\n
\u201cMeasles spreads through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes, and people can be infectious before they develop symptoms,\u201d Dr Armstrong said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBabies who are too young to be fully vaccinated, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems are at greater risk of severe illness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr Armstrong urged parents and carers to stay alert to symptoms in babies and other young children.<\/p>\n
Measles-containing vaccines can protect from the virus, and health authorities are reminding people to check their jab status to ensure they have had two doses.<\/p>\n
People born before 1966 and who are vaccinated are considered immune to measles.<\/p>\n
There have been six cases of measles in WA so far this year, after a record 2025 season with more than 60 infections.<\/p>\n