Metro Vancouver health officials say they have identified two new cases of measles in the region.
According to Vancouver Coastal Health, this brings to the total number of measles cases in the Metro Vancouver to 15, which includes 12 related to the outbreak at local schools and three others acquired by travellers.
"Both cases are related to the school outbreak, and had been receiving follow-up care as they were known to have been exposed to persons with measles infection," VCH told CTV News in an email, adding that "it’s possible that more cases may occur in individuals who were previously exposed."
VCH announced the most recent measles outbreak in the Lower Mainland on Feb. 13.
Two days later, the health authority confirmed that doctors had identified a total of nine cases this year. Eight of those are associated with schools in the region. The ninth was identified earlier in the year and is not related to the others.
Two new cases related to travel were announced this past weekend. During that announcement, VCH also identified a number of locations where people have been exposed to the disease, including a number of SkyTrain stations on the Canada Line.
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Health officials are asking anyone who thinks they might have been exposed to illness to check their vaccinations records.
What you need to know about measles
Those born before Jan. 1, 1970 are considered immune to disease. If you were born after 1994, you most likely received both doses of the measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine.
But those born between those years and those who grew up outside the province might have received the first dose of the MMR, but not the second.
Measles is highly contagious and spreads through breathing, coughing and sneezing. It can live as long as two hours in an airspace, even after the infected person has left.
The virus has an incubation period of about up to 21 days, but can be spread as early as four days before an infected person knows they have the virus.
Initial symptoms include fever, diarrhea, coughing, runny nose, red and watery eyes and tiredness. After a few days, a rash begins, typically starting on the face and spreading across the body.
In rare cases, it can lead to pneumonia, brain damage, blindness, deafness, and even death.
Those experiencing the symptoms are asked to stay home to help prevent the spread, and call their doctor's office before visiting can take precautions to protect others.
