ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Diocese of St. Petersburg said there is a confirmed case of measles at St. Petersburg Catholic High School.
The email sent out to parents said one sophomore student has a confirmed case of measles and the student has not been present at school since Jan. 27.
WATCH: Confirmed case of measles at St. Petersburg Catholic High School: School officials
Confirmed case of measles at St. Petersburg Catholic High School: School officials
The message said they are currently unaware of any additional cases and they are working with the Department of Health to ensure the safety of students and staff.
“While diocesan immunization policy allows for medical exemptions from a licensed physician, 99.2% of our student body is vaccinated against measles. Given the school’s high vaccination rate, we plan to continue all classes and activities as normal,” the email to families stated.
“Nine out of 10 people who are exposed to measles who have not been vaccinated will get infected,” said Dr. Doug Ross, the chief medical officer at AdventHealth Carrollwood. “That’s high.”
Dr. Ross said measles is very contagious.
“Measles was theoretically eradicated from the United States, and now they are contemplating whether or not this has gotten to endemic or epidemic level because we’ve had hundreds of cases across the United States just in recent history,” said Ross.
Tampa Bay 28 asked Dr. Ross if he’s ever seen a case of the measles.
“No, I’ve learned about it in textbooks because we had herd immunity when I was in medical school and training, and even up until recently, we have claimed that we have had herd immunity, so it was pretty rare,” Ross said. “We’ve had several cases in Hillsborough County recently, but I have not seen that personally yet.”
The CDC says symptoms include high fever, cough, runny nose, red, watery eyes and rash.
“The effectiveness of the immunization is about 94% effective by the time you’ve had your second booster of measles, so it’s a very effective vaccination, and I would like to point out that it’s one of the safest vaccinations out there,” said Dr. Ross.
The message to school families said anyone with symptoms should stay home and seek medical care right away.
More information about measles and prevention can be found here.
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