Lake County, Illinois, is on high alert as health officials announced on Saturday the first measles case in the area, ringing alarm bells across the Chicago suburbs, especially given that the city is already grappling with a measles outbreak, which now stands at 17 confirmed cases, the Chicago Tribune reports. The outbreak, which has primarily affected a large city-run migrant shelter, has put the most vulnerable at risk, particularly unvaccinated migrants and children under the age of five, with 11 of the infected being young kids.
The connection between the Lake County incidence and the Chicago outbreak is clear, and now public health crusaders in both regions are urging for strengthened vaccination efforts; the City of Chicago took action by inoculating roughly 4,000 migrants, notably from Venezuela, who had missed vaccinations in their native country due to healthcare system failures, and at least two students in Chicago Public Schools have subsequently come down with the virus, according to the Chicago Tribune, making efforts to halt the spread even more pressing.
After the identification of the Lake County case, they've diligently traced potential exposure hotspots, isolating two specific locations – Consume Restaurant in Lake Zurich and Advocate Condell Medical Center's Emergency Department in Libertyville – with precise timeframes when the public could have been at risk of catching measles, NBC Chicago details. Officials are pushing those who may have been exposed and remain unvaccinated to move fast, recommending immediate vaccination with the MMR vaccine as a preventative measure.
While the unvaccinated scramble to get shots, those who have been previously inoculated probably have the upper hand against the virus. Health authorities are advising all individuals who were at the mentioned locations during the possibly contaminated hours to get in touch with the Lake County Health Department's communicable disease team, as per the instructions issued by the county, also highlighting that certain high-risk groups like pregnant women, infants under six months, or those with weakened immune systems may qualify for immunoglobulin treatment, a protective measure to possibly curb the disease, NBC Chicago reports.
