By Briana Vannozzi
Correspondent
State health officials are confirming a 1-year-old baby from Jersey City did in fact have the measles virus and has since recovered.
“We were aware several weeks ago about the potential and there’s a fine line that you go to balance between not being an alarmist and monitoring the situation,” said Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop.
As of Feb. 6 there are 121 confirmed cases in 17 states and Washington D.C. for this year alone. According to New Jersey’s Health Department, there were three measles cases in the Garden State last year.
“I think it’s not something that should be taken lightly, now remember that most people who develop measles will have a nasty disease but will recover completely. However, one in 1,000 children with measles will develop infection of the brain with brain swelling and brain damage,” said Dr. Meg Fisher.
“I have three children of my own, so it definitely scares me to know that this is back in effect, the measles thing, you know,” said mother Jasmine Payden.
Measles is highly contagious. For every one person infected, another 15 will contract the disease if they haven’t been vaccinated. Anyone exposed to the Jersey City baby would have become ill by this weekend at the latest. A spokesperson for the Department of Health tells us no one has come forward with symptoms.
“There’s a lesson there as it relates to making sure that people get vaccinated and you put others in harm’s way if you don’t take the necessary precautions,” Fulop said.
The Health Department says at this time there is no identified link between this case and the outbreak associated with Disneyland, and they’re doing their best to stem any fears here. Meanwhile, parents in Brick Township recently received a letter notifying them of a chickenpox outbreak.
In it, the superintendent warns parents that anyone who has not been vaccinated or exposed to the virus is at risk. Health officials confirm two cases have been reported in Brick.
“We know that we still have a lot of chickenpox in the United States. We will have chickenpox in the United States for several generations and the reason is after you get chickenpox, that virus becomes latent in your body so it stays in your body, in your nerve cells and it can be reactivated when you get older as shingles,” Fisher said.
Some attribute the resurgence of these diseases — the highest in decades — to an increase in the anti-vaccination sentiment among parents. Overseas travelers bringing viruses with them can infect vulnerable and unvaccinated populations.
“So we know 100 cases in that early part of the century and then we started to get more and more cases and in fact last year there were more than 600 cases and 23 outbreaks,” Fisher said.
Anyone who suspects they’ve come in contact with either virus is asked to report it right away. The diseases are contagious for several days before symptoms appear.