Saskatchewan Health Authority reports 6th measles case in provinces southwest [Video]

The Saskatchewan Health Authority says there are now six confirmed measles cases in the province.

Medical Health Officer Dr. David Torr said on Thursday the most recent case was found in southwest Saskatchewan and involves an unvaccinated adult who travelled from Mexico and the United States.

He said the other cases have been reported in the province’s southeast, southwest and northwest.

Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that’s airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs.

Adults born in Saskatchewan in the 1970s and 1980s should also be checking their immunity for the measles virus.

People born before 1970 are assumed to be immune because the disease was so prevalent in the 1960s and earlier; however, the single dose was thought to be adequate until several large outbreaks in vaccinated school-aged children occurred in the 1980s in both the United States and Canada.

The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, …