Two people who visited UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh last week have tested positive for measles, prompting Allegheny County health officials to warn of possible exposures in several areas of the hospital.
On Tuesday, the health department warned of potential exposure on Thursday in the hospital’s main lobby, third-floor waiting and clinic areas, cafeteria and elevators, after two non-residents of Allegheny County tested positive after a visit to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
Hundreds of people were exposed during the visit, according to Dr. Donald Yealy, UPMC’s chief medical officer and chair of its emergency medicine department.
“It is a large number of people, bigger than what we’ve seen before,” Yealy told TribLive Tuesday afternoon.
He said the exposure involved a child and two parents who were at the hospital for a scheduled visit. He declined to say whether the visit was related to measles.
This is the third confirmed case at the hospital announced by the health department.
A Jefferson County resident was diagnosed with measles at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh on Aug. 20. The department said the person had visited the hospital Aug. 12 and Aug. 18.
Yealy said he did not know the home county of the two people diagnosed Thursday. State health department spokesman Barry Ciccocioppo also told TribLive he did not yet know where they were from.
It was the first confirmed case of the highly contagious disease in Allegheny County since 2019, according to the Allegheny County Health Department’s website.
Measles is a virus that infects the lungs and spreads when an infected person breaths, coughs, or sneezes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The virus remains in the air and on surfaces for up to two hours, even after the infected person leaves the area. An individual with measles can spread the virus to others four days before and four days after the rash begins.
Symptoms can start seven to 21 days after exposure, according to the health department.
Symptoms to watch for include fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes, followed by a rash that starts on the head or face before spreading downward.
Exposed areas include: the Giraffe/Hippo waiting room on the 3rd floor between 1-4 p.m., Giraffe Clinic on the 3rd floor between 2-5 p.m., the cafeteria on the 3rd floor between 3-5 p.m., the main lobby on the 1st floor between 1-5 p.m. and the Grape/Purple elevators between 1-5 p.m.
UPMC is contacting patients and staff identified as exposed, while the Allegheny County Health Department is urging people who were in those areas to check their vaccination status and contact a healthcare provider for guidance.
Yealy said people vaccinated with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine are nearly always immune to the virus.
Unvaccinated people, however, are at high risk for infection and complications.
“The best way to stay protected is to get vaccinated,” he said.
Yealy advised those who think they may have been exposed to call ahead before coming to the hospital.
The cases are part of a growing measles outbreak that has infected nearly 500 people so far this year in Pennsylvania — none of whom were fully vaccinated.
Around half the cases have been in and around Lancaster County, while significant outbreaks are also ongoing in Mifflin, Snyder, Jefferson, Centre and Clearfield counties.