Health officials warn of measles exposure at Philadelphia children's museum

PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 1 (UPI) -- Health officials are warning people they may have been exposed to measles at the Please Touch Museum and a CVS drugstore in town.

Measles exposure occurred at the CVS, 316 E. Lancaster Ave. in Wayne, between 5:30 and 8 p.m. on Dec. 28. Possible exposure at the museum happened from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Dec. 29.

Health officials warned that certain groups, if they are exposed to the virus, are at risk of becoming infected: babies who are too young to have received the MMR vaccine, people vaccinated between 1963 and 1967 who have not been revaccinated, anyone born after 1957 who has only been vaccinated once, people who refused vaccination, and people from areas where vaccination coverage is low.

Measles is highly contagious. Symptoms begin within 1 to two weeks with a runny nose, cough and high fever, and within four days a characteristic red rash develops. An infected person can spread the disease as soon as symptoms develop and up to four days after the rash disappears.

The disease spreads through coughing and sneezing and the virus remains viable on surfaces for up to two hours.

Measles complications include diarrhea, pnuemonia, inflammation of the brain and death. Pregnant women face miscarriage or premature delivery.

Through Nov. 29, the CDC reports there were 610 cases of measles in 24 states, more than triple the number reported in 2013 and 12 times the amount in 2012.

CDC says the disease typically enters the United States via foreign travelers, and an outbreak can happen if the virus is delivered to an area with low measles vaccination rates.