An inactive case of measles was confirmed to be in Northern Health according to the latest update on the highly contagious virus’ resurgence.
The province stayed free of active measles cases, despite the confirmed instance in the health authority that services much of northern B.C., according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
This additional case was the only one reported by the centre in their most recent bi-weekly update and brings Northern Health’s total case count up to 212 for this year. The vast majority of the 285 cases discovered provincially were in the region, and many of those cases were in the northeast.
According to the centre, the new case was in a baby under one-year-old – which means they were too young to be vaccinated. The Public Health Agency of Canada recommends giving babies their first dose of the measles-mumps-rubella immunization, or its variant with the chickenpox vaccine added, when they are 12 to 15-months old.
A second dose is administered to children when they are 18 months. The MMR vaccine can be given to anyone over this age, but the added chickenpox protection is only available for children until they are 13 years old.
Measles’ spread in the northeast is rampant enough to prompt a general exposure notice of the north Peace region from the disease control hub.
Fort St John is home to the only pin-pointed exposure location in Northern Health. The local hospital’s emergency department waiting area was exposed to measles overnight from Aug. 28 to 29.
