Measles cases on the rise

Health authorities in the Bay of Plenty are on high alert with more cases of measles being reported.

People are being urged to make sure they're immunised against measles if they haven't already had the vaccine when younger.

Since mid-December 2013 the Bay of Plenty has recorded 18 confirmed cases, with three being reported to Toi Te Ora Public Heath this month.

Toi Te Ora Public Health includes the Tauranga, Whakatane, Rotorua and Taupo areas.

Nationally, there have been 250 cases since December, with 40 recorded in hospitals and no deaths.

Since between July 5 and July 16 there have been 13 new cases nationally.

Medical Officer of Health Dr Jim Miller says there have been some more cases locally.

'It just underlines that there is an ongoing concern. There is still a risk of measles in our area.

'It's a very infectious disease and we know that we don't have as higher rate of immunisation that would protect the community against an outbreak, so we could get further cases.”

Jim says the recent cases are linked to the issues in the Waikato, as people have caught measles in there and come back to the Bay of Plenty.

'Obviously those affected are being managed appropriately at home, so that they keep themselves away from people while they recover.”

While there is a risk from the cases around the country, Jim says there is also a risk of measles being brought into New Zealand from people who have travelled overseas.

'The most important thing people can do is to make sure they know if they are immune or not to measles. This can be done by asking a parent or checking with your GP.

'People over the age 45 are likely to be immune as they more than likely had measles when they were younger.”

Jim says if people are unsure if they have been vaccinated, then it's probably best they get a single dose of MMR to make sure they are immunised.

'Although New Zealand is actually, and it sounds strange, we're actually measles-free in a sense because we don't normally have measles circulating in New Zealand.

'It tends to be that people bring it back from their travels and then we get outbreaks locally because we have low immunisation rates.”

Normally New Zealand can go for a long period of time without seeing any measles cases –and Jim says cases normally involved people that have picked up measles from their holidays.

'It's important for people to make sure they have their routine vaccination up-to-date as it's more important and can stop you bringing unwanted souvenirs back to New Zealand.

'It can actually protect you from a lot of overseas diseases as well.”

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