NEW ORLEANS — Two people were diagnosed with measles in the Greater New Orleans Area.
The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH). says both patients had recently returned from an out-of-state trip.
On Thursday, LDH confirmed with WWL Louisiana's Meg Farris that neither patient was vaccinated against the infectious disease.
A public health investigation is underway.
Here are the symptoms and what you should do if you are exposed to measles, according to LDH:
Symptoms of measles?
- According to the CDC, the symptoms of measles generally appear about seven to 14 days after a person is infected.
- Measles typically begins with high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes. Two or three days after symptoms begin, tiny white spots (Koplik spots) may appear inside the mouth of a patient.
- Three to five days after symptoms begin, a rash breaks out. It usually begins as flat red spots that appear on the face at the hairline and spread downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feed. Small, raised bumps may also appear on top of the flat red spots. The spots may become joined together as they spread from the head to the rest of the body. When the rash appears, a person's fever may spike to more than 104° Fahrenheit.
- After a few days, the fever subsides and rash fades.
What should I do?
Immediately call your healthcare provider and let them know that you have been exposed to someone who has measles. Your healthcare provider can:
- Determine if you are immune to measles based on your vaccination record, age, or laboratory evidence.
- Please make sure to notify your provider that you have been exposed to measles before you arrive so that they can make special arrangements to evaluate you, if needed, without putting other patients and medical office staff at risk.
For more information on measles, click here.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.