Connecticut reports 1st measles case of the year in unvaccinated child

Connecticut has confirmed its first measles case of the year, involving an unvaccinated child in Fairfield County, according to state health officials.

The case was reported on Wednesday in an announcement from the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH). The child, who is under the age of 10, recently traveled internationally before developing symptoms several days later, according to DPH.

Symptoms included cough, runny nose, congestion, fever, and a rash that started at the head and spread across the body. Officials said this is the state’s first measles case in more than four years.

DPH said the child was not vaccinated against measles. No additional details about possible exposures were released.

“The single best way to protect your children and yourself from measles is to be vaccinated,” said DPH
Commissioner Manisha Juthani, MD. “One dose of measles vaccine is about 93% effective, while two doses are about 97% effective.”

The new case means only seven states—Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and West Virginia—and Washington, D.C., have not reported measles this year. All other states have confirmed at least one infection in what has become the nation’s most active measles year in more than three decades.

The Connecticut announcement follows significant increases in other states. Nearly 50 new measles cases were reported nationwide on Tuesday, driven largely by outbreaks in Arizona and South Carolina, according to state health departments.

Arizona has reported 176 cases this year, most linked to an outbreak in Mohave County, while South Carolina has reported 111 cases tied to its Upstate outbreak.

The largest U.S. outbreak this year occurred in West Texas, where 762 cases and two deaths were confirmed before the outbreak was declared over in August. The virus also spread into New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Kansas, resulting in more than 100 additional cases and one additional death.

A total of 1,912 measles cases have been reported across the United States so far this year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).