If you are heading to the Phoenix area for Super Bowl XLIX and haven't been vaccinated for the measles virus, beware.
Arizona state health officials are closely watching more than 1,000 people who have come into contact with the measles virus as a result of a Disneyland outbreak, according to Yahoo! Sports.
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So far, 67 people have been confirmed to have the virus. Seven of those people are currently in Arizona.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official instructed anyone with symptoms of the virus to stay home and not attend the Super Bowl on Sunday.
“The very large outbreaks we’ve seen around the world often started with a small number of cases,”said Anne Schuchat, MD, director of the agency’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
Health officials in Maricopa, Pinal and Gila counties, all a part of the Phoenix metropolitan area, have also asked that those who have not had the measles vaccination to stay home for the duration of the 21-day incubation period.
If someone infected is crammed in the stadium with others who have not been vaccinated, a similar situation to the Disneyland outbreak could occur.
“It is one of the most contagious infectious diseases we know of,” said Gail Shust, MD, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the Kravis Children’s Hospital at Mount Sinai. “If you’re not immune, you have about a 9 in 10 chance of getting it through close contact.”
Measles can be spread through the air and direct contact. It can also survive on a surface for two hours. Complications such as pneumonia and encephalitis can appear, especially in children, the elderly and those with weak immune systems.
Symptoms include coughing, congestion, pinkeye, high fever and an aggressive rash.