State health officials say they have a confirmed case of measles in the Omaha area.
Measles is highly contagious and is spread through the air by breathing, coughing, or sneezing and it's possible others who were in the same locations in Douglas and Sarpy Counties may have been exposed.
The locations include Delta flight 798 from Minneapolis to Omaha between 8-10:30 p.m. on March 12th, the South Terminal and baggage claim at Eppley Airfield between 10:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m., the Hampton Inn on Southport Parkway in La Vista between March 12th and 17th, Urgent Care of Papillion on March 15th between 6-8 p.m., CHI Urgent Care on 96th Street in La Vista on March 15th between 7-10 p.m., and the Bergan Mercy Emergency Room on March 15 between 8:30 p.m. and midnight.
If anyone who was in those locations during those time frames and comes down with a fever and rash should see a doctor. Those most at risk of being infected with the measles are people who have had no doses or only one dose of MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine or who have not had the measles
Symptoms of measles generally begin within 7-14 days after exposure. It starts with a fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes and sore throat and is followed by a rash that spreads all over the body. It can also cause severe complications like pneumonia and encephalitis.
"They can be severe in some people and have some long-term consequences in the brain that are pretty bad," said Douglas County Heath Department Senior Epidemiologist Dr. Anne O'Keefe.
O'Keefe said the virus is airborne and stays in the air for a couple hours, "The virus can float in the air and it can stay there up to 2 hours, so even after a person has left a room if you're in that same room you can actually become infected if you are not immune to measles"
There were no measles cases in Nebraska in 2016, three in 2015 and one measles case in 2014. Prior to that, the last measles case in a Nebraska resident was in the early 90s.
