Measles Outbreak in West Texas Becomes Worst in Nearly 30 Years with 48 Reported Cases

The latest measles case count likely represents a fraction of the true number of infections. Health officials — who are scrambling to get a handle on the vaccine-preventable outbreak — suspect 200 to 300 people in West Texas are infected but untested, and therefore not part of the state’s official tally so far.

Additional measles cases "are likely to occur" as an outbreak of the virus grows, the Texas Department of State Health Services said in its latest update. So far, 48 cases have been reported in West Texas, with all of those occurring in people who were not vaccinated against the virus or who's vaccination status was unknown, state officials said in the update.

The symptoms present with a mild to moderate fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes, and sore throat. A few days after these initial symptoms appear “tiny white spots (Koplik’s spots) may appear inside the mouth,” the site noted, adding days later the patient will have a red or brown-colored rash beginning on the face or hairline and resulting in a possible spike in fever.

The outbreak has spread from its epicenter in Gaines County. There were 49 cases of measles in Texas in 1996. In 2013, there were 27 cases reported after a person who traveled to Asia returned and interacted with a vaccine-hesitant community. Measles can survive in the air for up to two hours.

Public health authorities in Texas and New Mexico have so far identified more than two dozen cases of measles. The vast majority of cases so far are in Gaines county in West Texas. The county has one of the highest rates of vaccine exemptions in the state and all of the confirmed cases are unvaccinated.