ST PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) officials have issued a health advisory following the discovery of the first case of measles in the state in two years.
The infected patient is a 1-year-old from Dakota County who just got back from international travel.
According to the MDH health advisory, the child was not vaccinated against measles and they are urging parents to get their kids vaccinated.
The child's unvaccinated sibling has since tested positive for measles bringing the total cases to two in Minnesota. No further information about the children has been released.
MDH officials said in 2022, Minnesota had a total of "22 cases of measles that were all related to international travel, all unvaccinated, with 10 individuals requiring hospitalization," according to the advisory.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 58 measles nationwide in 2023 and nine cases already in 2024.
MDH officials said family physicians, primary care clinicians, infectious disease doctors, and emergency department staff need to be aware of people showing signs of measles.
Symptoms of measles include a rash, fever, cough, runny nose, watery eyes, and pink eye.
Measles or rubeola is a highly contagious viral infection that's serious for small children but is easily preventable by a vaccine, according to the MDH website.
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist:
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
