On Sunday, Aug. 23, Kaneland School District administrators issued a statement informing the community of a confirmed measles case involving a Kaneland High School student.
In the release, administrators announced that they are working in close coordination with the Kane County Health Department (KCHD) and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) in the wake of a potential exposure event on Tuesday, Aug. 18.
According to Sunday’s release, contract tracing confirmed that potential exposure was limited to the KHS building.
Kaneland High School opted for a day on e-learning on Tuesday, Aug. 25, as efforts to verify the vaccination status of individuals were carried out.
Measles is a highly infectious, airborne disease that is known to cause serious health complications, especially for vulnerable populations like young children and pregnant women.
Serious cases can result in pneumonia, encephalitis (swelling of the brain) and in some cases, death.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 9 in 10 people who come into close contact with the virus will become infected if they are not protected.
Two doses of the MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccine is proven to be highly effective at preventing measles with a 97% success rate.
The risk of contracting measles remains extremely low for vaccinated students and staff.
As a precaution, families of KHS students and staff have been encouraged to monitor for symptoms through Sept. 8.
Measles symptoms appear 7 to 14 days post exposure and typically present as a high fever, cough, runny nose with red, watery eyes, and a rash that appears 3-5 days after symptoms begin.
Airborne pathogens can spread to others if they have been in a room occupied by an infected person, even up to two hours after that person has left.
If symptoms develop, the KCHD is urging people to contact their health provider before visiting a medical office or urgent care facility. This allows healthcare professionals to take appropriate precautionary measures.
Those who have medical questions or are seeking community health guidance are urged to contact the KHS Health Office at 630-365-5100 ext. 71228 or ext. 71223.
Calls can also be made to the Kane County Health Department at 630-208-3801 by pressing 4 for communicable disease.
The KCHD has created a Measles update page and has issued a press release of its own.
