An outbreak of measles continues in Latvia, with 38 cases already registered, according to information published by the Disease Prevention and Control Center (DPCC), as reported by LETA.
According to the information provided by the center, another child under the age of five has fallen ill.
A total of 13 children aged six to ten years, 13 aged eleven to fifteen years, and one infected person aged sixteen to twenty years have been reported.
All the others are adults, including one aged thirty-one to thirty-five years, two aged thirty-six to forty years, three aged forty-one to forty-five years, another three aged forty-six to fifty years, and one aged fifty-one to fifty-five years.
As previously reported, the majority of those infected are students of the Riga Waldorf School.
The Disease Prevention and Control Center (DPCC) urges parents and family doctors to check the vaccination status of children. According to the vaccination schedule, the first vaccination is administered at the age of twelve to fifteen months, and revaccination is done at the age of seven years.
If vaccination was not carried out at the appropriate age, individuals can receive it as a state-funded medical service up to the age of twenty-five.
The DPCC reminds that measles is a highly contagious viral disease that primarily spreads through airborne droplets from the respiratory tract, capable of remaining in the air of indoor spaces. Thus, infection is possible not only through direct contact with an infected person but also when being in rooms where the measles patient has been in the last two hours.
If symptoms characteristic of measles appear—such as fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes, and later a red spotted rash on the skin—it is strongly recommended to stay at home, contact a doctor, report the possible risk of infection, and strictly follow the doctor's instructions.
