A toddler in Pima County initially suspected of having the measles, instead was having a side effect to the vaccine, health officials say.
The 1-year-old child βwas suffering from a rare measles vaccine side effect,β the Pima County Health Department said in a news release. βThe toddler is on the mend and now has a 93% protection rate from measles due to their first vaccine dose.β
The Tucson hospital where the tot was taken over the weekend, and health officials with the county and state took precautions in the childβs treatment as if it were an infectious case, the release said.
The side effects of an MMR vaccine can sometimes look similar to a measles infection with a fever and rash. However, it is not contagious, the county said.
The type of reaction the toddler had happens in about 5% of people who get the vaccine.
The county health department cited the measles scare as an opportunity to suggest vaccinating children against the measles. It also said it is a good time for anyone born after 1957 to review their vaccination records and consider a booster shot.
Measles can be prevented by getting vaccinated. Two doses of the MMR vaccine are 97% effective at preventing measles, and one dose is about 93% effective, the county said.
There have been no measles cases confirmed in Arizona.
However, there have been hundreds of confirmed cases in states across the country, including neighboring New Mexico.
Texas has reached 422 cases of measles in an outbreak that started two months ago. Texas, New Mexico Ohio, Kansas and Oklahoma all have active measles outbreaks, the Associated Press reports.
Two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes.
Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus thatβs airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs.
In fact, the virus can live in the air for up to two hours. That means it can spread even after an infected person has left a room, health officials say.
Go to pima.gov/measles for more measles information.
