An unvaccinated adult may have inadvertently caused the next measles epidemic, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced Monday, January 9. This unidentified individual is believed to have contracted the virus while traveling internationally, and has now brought it to the United States, more specifically, Colorado.

Measles is respiratory disease that can easily be spread through the air through water droplets. “It is so incredibly contagious that if someone has measles in a room, those that are unvaccinated, they have a 90% chance of developing measles just from sharing the same air and water droplets as that sickened individual,” Dr. Scott Bentz with Presbyterian St. Luke’s Hospital stated. The virus can even live in the air for up to eight hours after the sickened individual has left.

The dates of the possible exposure to the public are December 21 to 29, 2016. The individual with the virus spent three days at Parker Adventist Hospital starting December 27 and was released January 1, 2017.

Symptoms of the measles virus include a fever, a rash, runny nose, a cough, and conjunctivitis (red, watery eyes). Those with the disease use to be kept in isolated and completely dark rooms because it could cause blindness. It is also known to cause deafness. Other serious complications with the measles virus may occur, such as diarrhea, pneumonia, and sometimes encephalitis (inflammation of the brain). In some cases, this disease can be fatal.

A person with measles is contagious for four days before the rash appears and up to four days after. Symptoms of measles typically begin seven to fourteen days after exposure, but may take up to 21 days to appear.

“There is an incubation period of 7-21 days,” school nurse Jennifer Stone stated, “You can have it and not know you have for up to 21 days.”

As of right now, given that there is only one adult that is known to have the disease in the Denver-Boulder area, based on where that person is in the process the risk of other people catching it is projected to end on January 19. “So we can all breathe a sigh of relief after January 19 if we don’t have any cases, but if other cases break out then you’re going to continue to have the risk of other people getting it,” Stone said.

People with measles symptoms should not attend school, work, or go out in public, since they may spread the disease to others.

If you are at school and you have measles symptoms, go to the school clinic, state that you have reason to believe that you have measles, list your symptoms and nurse Stone will treat it as though it really were the measles. If you go to the clinic with a runny nose, a fever, and a rash, due to recent events, you will be isolated in a cot room and asked to put a mask over your mouth. The health department would then be called with a suspected case of measles and further action will be taken. The exam room then wouldn’t be used for the next two hours after the student has left, if the student was wearing a mask, as a precaution to avoid spreading the disease. Sadly, “There is no treatment for measles,” Stone said, “The only thing we can do with somebody who has measles is give supportive care and that means if they’re running a fever we can give them tylenol, or give them fluids, but there is no medicine that takes the measles away.”

“If you have reason to believe that you have contracted the virus, you must get tested. Don’t go to the doctor’s office. Either report your case to the health department as a ‘suspected measles case’ or contact your doctor via telephone to prevent the risk of exposing others to your potential disease,” Stone said.

There are 31 students at Smoky that have not gotten the vaccination for measles. There are nearly 2,100 students that attend Smoky. “We have what’s called herd immunity. We have enough student’s here that have the vaccine that the chances of us having an outbreak are low,” Stone assures, “You don’t have to have 100% of the population vaccinated, you just have to have a high enough percentage that you greatly reduce the chances of an outbreak within that group of people, so enough people in our school are vaccinated that makes us a much safer place.”

If you wish to get vaccinated, there are numerous places that offer the vaccine such as Tri-County Health Department (which takes people without insurance, people with medicaid, and if you have insurance the price is low, if not free), any Urgent Care, any Walgreens location that have clinics, and your doctor.

In 2013, there were 187 cases in the United States, 667 cases in 2014, and 189 cases in 2015. There was one case in 2015 and another in 2016.

The following locations are where the infected individual admitted to going since contracting the virus. People who visited these locations during the dates and approximate time periods may have been exposed to measles. They should monitor themselves for symptoms and seek medical attention if any occurred.

Westerra Credit Union

14305 E. Alameda Ave., Aurora, 80012

12/21/2016 from 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

King Soopers Buckley Square

17000 E. Iliff Ave., Aurora 80013

12/21/2016 from 11:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Vitamin Cottage

3440 S. Tower Rd., Aurora, 80013

12/21/2016 from 1 -5 p.m. and

12/27/2016 from 12:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Walmart Supercenter Pioneer Hills

5650 S. Chambers Rd., Aurora, 80015

12/21/2016 from 2:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Alfalfa’s Market

785 E. South Boulder Rd., Louisville, 80027

12/22/2016 from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

T Mobile

1590 28th St., Boulder, 80303

12/22/2016 from 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

uBreakiFix

1136 Spruce St., Boulder, 80302

12/22/2016 from 3:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Rebecca’s Apothecary

1227 Spruce St., Boulder, 80302

12/22/2016 from 5:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Falafel King

1314 Pearl St., Boulder, 80302

12/22/2016 from 5:00 p.m – 7:00 p.m.

Flatirons Mall, specifically, T Mobile and Brookstone

1 W. Flatiron Crossing Dr., Broomfield, 80021

12/22/2016 from 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Chipotle Mexican Grill

1644 E. Evans Ave., Denver, 80210

12/22/2016 from 8:30 – 10:30 p.m.

Dollar Tree Englewood Plaza

351 W. Englewood Pkwy., Englewood, 80110

12/23/2016 from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Walmart Supercenter

601 Englewood Pkwy., Englewood, 80110

12/23/2016 from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Sprouts Farmers Market

2880 S. Colorado Blvd., Denver, 80222

12/23/2016 from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

AFC Urgent Care

760 S Colorado Blvd., Denver, 80246

12/27/2016 from 10 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

T Mobile Blvd Center

1685 S. Colorado Blvd., Denver, 80222

12/27/2016 from 10 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Lifetime Fitness

5000 E. Dry Creek Rd., Centennial, 80122

12/27/2016 from 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Parker Adventist Hospital Emergency Department

9395 Crown Crest Blvd., Parker, 80138

12/29/2016 – 1/1/17 from 5:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.