Oakland County officials on Tuesday confirmed a case of measles in a child, making it the county’s second case this year.
The Oakland County Health Department said the individuals who were at the Detroit Medical Center’s Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital’s Emergency Room in Commerce Township from 7:20 p.m. through 11:10 p.m. on Dec. 7 may have been exposed.
The department also said officials are working with the hospital to identify people who may have been exposed so they can be connected with resources and recommendations.
Measles is an infectious respiratory illness that spreads through coughing and sneezing. Symptoms include a rash, fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes. An infection can be serious, leading to pneumonia or inflammation of the brain.
The virus can live for up to two hours in the air where an infected person coughed or sneezed.
People who were at the hospital on Dec. 7 should monitor themselves for a fever, rash and other symptoms consistent with measles. The symptoms usually begin 7-14 days after exposure, but can appear up to 21 days after exposure. Anyone with symptoms of measles should call their health care provider.
“Vaccination is the most effective tool we have to prevent the spread of measles,” Kate Guzman, Oakland County’s health officer, said in a statement. “The measles vaccine helps protect our community’s most vulnerable, which includes infants, children with medical conditions, and others who cannot be vaccinated.”
Oakland County officials confirmed the county’s first case of measles in June. The case was found in a person from another county who visited a Rochester Hills medical office building.
Michigan has had 30 confirmed cases of measles this year, according to a Michigan Department of Health and Human Services dashboard last updated on Tuesday.
Osceola County has reported the most cases of measles in the state this year with seven cases. Grand Traverse, Kent and Montcalm have the second-highest number of cases with four each.
cramirez@detroitnews.com