UC Davis Medical Center Warns 200 People Of Potential Measles Exposure
SACRAMENTO (CBS SF) – The University of California, Davis Medical Center in Sacramento has warned 200 people that they may have been exposed to measles last month.
The hospital sent out letters last week to patients who were in the hospital's Emergency Department waiting room on March 17th.
Patients who received the letter are being advised to contact their primary health care providers and that vaccination is the best protection against the measles.
Dr. Dean A. Blumberg, the hospital's Chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, told CBS Sacramento that a patient from Calaveras County came into the Emergency Department with a rash that turned out to be measles.
Blumberg said another patient, identified as 7-year-old named Jackson, who suffers from a terminal illness, was evaluated in the same exam room as the patient with measles before doctors suspected measles and closed the room to be cleaned.
Doctors said Jackson did not have measles as of Tuesday, 16 days after he was exposed. Blumberg said it typically takes eight to 12 days from the time of infection to develop symptoms. The range can also be seven to 21 days.
No other infections have been reported at the medical center.
News of the exposure comes as communities in the Bay Area and across the country grapple with measles outbreaks. Last month, Santa Clara County health officials issued three separate alerts on potential measles exposures, including from a tourist who possibly exposed thousands of people by visiting multiple landmarks, restaurants and malls.
Also last month, Alameda County health officials warned patrons of a barbecue restaurant in Livermore of being possibly exposed to the disease.
