PORT ANGELES — Clallam County public health authorities have confirmed a fifth case of measles.
The patient is an adult man living in Port Angeles who is related to people previously diagnosed with the disease.
Because the man had quarantined himself, he had no contact with susceptible people while he was contagious,
but the case widens the “window” of possible infection to April 19, health officials said.
The new cases extends the time during which public health officials can expect more cases.
After the fourth case was diagnosed in late February, officials said that the window of contagion would close April 6.
The man with the fifth confirmed case of measles had been inoculated against the highly-contagious disease but with a vaccine that was used from 1957 to 1971 and does not protect people as well as present immunizations, health authorities said.
Partly because of that, Clallam County Health and Human Services Iva Burks urged adults who have had a single shot of the old vaccine, as well as any who are unvaccinated, to come to no-cost clinics Monday, Thursday and Saturday.
All the clinics will be held at the public health office, 111 E. Third St., Port Angeles.
The schedule:
■ 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday — Walk-in clinic for which appointments are not necessary.
■ 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday — Appointments are recommended, although walk-ins will be seen.
■ 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday — Walk-in clinic.
For details, call 360-417-2274.
The latest measles patient suffered an onset of the ailment’s telltale rash on March 4, Burks said.
Results from a test sent to the state lab on Wednesday were received late Thursday, confirming the diagnosis.
He became the fifth person in a string of Clallam County cases first diagnosed in an adult male who was hospitalized Feb. 1 in Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles and has since recovered.
A second man and a 5-year-old girl caught measles after exposure to that patient. A 14-year-old sibling of the kindergarten girl contracted measles after exposure to her.
The latest patient was a relative to two previously diagnosed cases, but Burks declined to specify which ones due to federal health-privacy regulations.
The most recent case is the first in Clallam County reported in an inoculated person.
Earlier, a juvenile who had received the modern measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine developed a rash that was found not to be actual measles. Instead it was a reaction to the vaccine.
No measles cases have been confirmed in Jefferson County.
The current measles vaccine is highly effective, Dr. Jeannette Stehr-Green, interim Clallam County health officer.
People who receive a single MMR shot have a 95 percent chance of immunity, she said.
Those who receive a recommended second shot have a 97-99 percent chance of immunity.
Current public health recommendations are for children to receive the first dose at 12-15 months of age and the second when they are 4-6 years old.
Adults born after 1957 should have at least one vaccination. Some people, including healthcare workers, should receive a second dose.
“We are not out of the woods yet with this outbreak,” Stehr-Green said.
“It is vital to get vaccinated to protect yourself and your family against measles as well as those who cannot be vaccinated, including babies, pregnant women, and immune suppressed people.”
In Jefferson County, vaccination clinics are held at the Jefferson County Public Health Clinic at 615 Sheridan St. and Jefferson Healthcare hospital’s primary care clinic at 915 Sheridan St., in Port Townsend.
The county clinic operates from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays and offers the MMR vaccine on a walk-in basis.
Jefferson Healthcare’s clinic is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Vaccinations aren’t available for walk-ins. People must schedule them by calling 360-379-8031.
The vaccine is free to children, but both the public health and hospital clinic charge an administrative fee billable to insurance.
For more Clallam County information, see http://tinyurl.com/PDN-measlesalerts.
For more in Jefferson County, visit www.jeffersoncountypublichealth.org.
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Reporter James Casey can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jcasey@peninsuladailynews.com
