National Microbiology Lab patient samples wait for the measles virus testing and genotyping in Winnipeg Manitoba, February 19, 2015.LYLE STAFFORD/The Globe and Mail
A passenger who was diagnosed with measles after flying to Vancouver from China over the weekend appears to have caught the disease late last month on another flight, health officials said.
That passenger is now the subject of a warning for fellow passengers to get immunized.
The person was among nine people connected to a flight from China that arrived in Vancouver on March 21 who later came down with measles, said Dr. Reka Gustafson of Vancouver Coastal Health. That total includes people who were either on the flight, including two high school students who were the first to be diagnosed, or who were in contact with someone who was.
The unidentified passenger then returned to China, but made another trip to Vancouver this past Saturday on Air China/Air Canada Flight CA 991/AC 6601, potentially exposing a planeload of people to the disease, said Gustafson.
"I'm hoping that with early intervention, we will have fewer transmissions," Dr. Gustafson told a news conference Wednesday.
Dr. Gustafson said her office couldn't determine how many passengers were on the most recent flight. Anyone who was on the flight should watch for symptoms such as fever, cough, runny nose, pink eye and a red rash for the next two weeks, she said.
Dr. Gustafson urged people to check their immunization history. She said anyone born after 1970 should ensure they've had two doses of the vaccine and anyone who isn't sure should get vaccinated.
Most people in B.C. have received the vaccine, but the health authority said some young adults and people born outside Canada may not be completely immunized against measles.
The incubation period lasts from seven to 21 days, with the average being two weeks, Dr. Gustafson said. She said the latest case was discovered early in its gestation, with fewer symptoms.
China has had an increase in measles cases this year, despite being a highly vaccinated population, Dr. Gustafson said.
Dr. Gustafson said that in 2014, there were 14 cases of measles reported in the Vancouver area. Most of those cases were imported to the province.