CALDWELL, Idaho — Parents in the Vallivue School District were recently notified of a potential measles exposure after two students — one at the middle school and one at the high school — were confirmed to have the virus, according to Southwest District Health.
Health officials are urging families to monitor for symptoms and take the situation seriously.
Watch: Learn what symptoms to look out for if exposed to measles
"Even death can happen from measles," said Lakshmi Venugopal, an epidemiologist with Southwest District Health.
Venugopal said measles symptoms usually develop within a specific window after exposure.
"So the measles symptoms usually happen 7 to 10, 7 to 14 days after a person is exposed to measles, but it can go up to 21 days," Venugopal said.
She explained that early symptoms can resemble a severe cold or flu.
"The symptoms usually start as a bad flu or a cold, a fever, which is usually high, more than 101 degrees. There'll be coughing, runny nose, and red eye, and runny eyes," she explained.
As the illness progresses, more distinct signs can appear.
"After 2 to 3 days, you might notice that a little white spot appears inside of the mouth and then, a child may develop a rash that usually starts from the top of the head and spreads down throughout the body," Venugopal said.
While many healthy children recover without serious issues, she said complications are possible.
"For most healthy people, measles can resolve on its own, but we have cases where people can go into severe complications, especially very young children and older adults, and people who are immunocompromised, and pregnant women if they are exposed to measles," she said.
Venugopal emphasized that the disease should not be dismissed as mild.
"The greatest misconception that we come across is people saying, 'Oh this is just a fever with rash, and it just goes away by itself,'" she said.
"About one in 20 people who get measles can develop into pneumonia, and there are other complications include swelling of the brain, ear infections. Even death can happen from measles, so this cannot be considered as something mild with just a fever and rash," Venugopal said.
Measles spreads through airborne transmission, making it highly contagious.
"When a person who's infected with measles talks, coughs, sneezes— the measles virus can get into the air and stay in the air for at least 2 hours after the person leaves the room," Venugopal said.
Vaccination remains the strongest protection. Venugopal said two doses of the MMR vaccine are highly effective.
"If you have 100 kids who are vaccinated, you might see 3 kids getting measles if they are exposed," she said.
"If you have gotten the 2 doses, the risk is lower, and even if you get measles, your symptoms are going to be milder," Venugopal said.
A Vallivue High School parent who was contacted through Facebook and asked to remain anonymous said her child is vaccinated, but she still feels concerned following the district's notification.
It’s frustrating Vallivue has said nothing to the children about this. The only thing they said to the parents was the single text saying, “check your email for something from SWDH regarding measles” they’ve been posting on social media, yet have not mentioned this at all. There are a lot of parents who do not get emails or texts from the school. The lack of transparency about the measles is just going to result in an even bigger outbreak. When my son got out of school and saw my texts Friday he informed me that the bell at VHS was broken that day. They had to manually release classes. In the school’s eyes, this was important enough to make multiple announcements about over the intercom. But warning them about potential measles symptoms was not. My son is vaccinated; however, if the kid with the runny eyes he sat by all period has the measles that leaves mine with a 1/33 chance of catching it anyway. Better than if he wasn’t vaccinated, but could’ve been entirely avoided had the school alerted the children to the symptoms and took precautions for kids displaying them.
Venugopal urged parents to stay vigilant in the coming weeks.
"People who have been exposed to measles, watch for symptoms like we discussed. If they're showing any symptoms concerning for measles, talk to a healthcare provider," she said.
"If your child shows any symptoms, don't send them to school, talk to your school nurse," Venugopal said.
She also noted that families who are unsure about vaccination status should consult their health care provider, adding that catch-up vaccination schedules are available.
The Vallivue School District declined to comment.
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