Measles alert in Sydney

New South Wales Health has urged Sydney residents to stay alert for signs and symptoms of measles after an infected traveller from Vietnam visited several parts of the city. The infected person arrived in Sydney from Ho Chi Minh City on board Jetstar flight JQ62 on March 9 and travelled in the following days to the city’s east, where he visited various locations, including the Princes of Wales Hospital Emergency Department. All persons at these locations during the visit, as well as other flight passengers and people at baggage claims at Sydney International Airport, are advised to watch for symptoms until April 2, the end of the 18-day incubation period. Measles is highly contagious and spreads through the air when infected people cough or sneeze. Symptoms include fever, runny nose, and a cough, followed a few days later by a red, blotchy rash spreading from the head to the rest of the body.
Dr Vicky Sheppeard, South Eastern Sydney Local Health District Director of Public Health, said that people developing symptoms should call ahead their GP or emergency department to avoid spending time with other patients in the waiting room. She also reminded city residents to check their vaccination status. Any Australian born after 1965 who has not already had two doses has a right to the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine free of charge, as well as children at 12 and 18 months of age. Dr Sheppeard recommended vaccination, especially for overseas travellers, as measles outbreaks are occurring in several parts of the world, including Vietnam.