King County health officials are investigating a measles case involving a child

A King County child has been diagnosed with measles, a highly contagious disease characterized by a rash, fever and other potentially serious symptoms. This is at least the second county-wide case of measles this year – a woman who has not been vaccinated against the disease has been Diagnosed in January.

It is not known whether the child has been vaccinated, officials said on Saturday.

Seattle and King County public health officials are investigating the source of the latest case and warning people at Aki Kurose Middle School on Thursday, May 11, between noon and 5:45 p.m., and Friday, May 12, from from 8:45 a.m. to 5:45 p.m., may have been exposed to an infection.

It is unknown if the child is a student at Aki Kurose.

On Saturday, May 13, anyone at Pike Place Market from 3:45 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. or World Market on Western Avenue from 4:15 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. could have been exposed. On Monday, May 15, people at HopeCentral, the pediatric and behavioral health clinic on South Othello Street, were able to be exposed from 2 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.

Officials are urging people who may have been exposed to find out if they have received the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which protects against measles, or if they have previously infected, which may provide immunity to disease. Before going to a clinic or hospital, people who develop an unexplained rash or fever should first call and explain that they may have been exposed to measles.

“The best protection against measles is to get vaccinated,” Elysia Gonzales, Medical Epidemiologist for Public Health – Seattle and King County, said in a press release. Two doses of the MMR vaccine provide about 97% protection that lasts a lifetime, Gonzales added.

Symptoms usually begin seven to 21 days after coming into contact with an infected person; the disease is airborne and can persist in the air for up to two hours after the infected person leaves the area.

Those most at risk of complications are infants and children under 5, adults 20 and older, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems.

Lawmakers cracked down on vaccine requirements for public school students in 2020 following a large measles outbreak in southwest Washington in 2019. Families can no longer apply for a personal or philosophical exemption from the MMR vaccine. And students must now show documentation proving they have received a list of vaccines and boosters, including the combined tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine, as well as vaccines against varicella, hepatitis B, poliomyelitis and measles, mumps and rubella.

In early 2020, before the pandemic hit, Seattle Public Schools went as far as class bar students who did not have a complete vaccination record. As of the 2021-22 school year, approximately 92% of King County public school students were up to date on their vaccines; in Seattle, that number was 93%, county data suggests.

The department has information on its website about measles symptoms, where to get vaccinated, and vaccine regulations in schools and daycares.