LANSING, Mich. (WOOD) — State health officials say a person sickened by measles was contagious when flying into Detroit Metropolitan Airport earlier this month.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services confirmed it’s the first case in the state this year. The unidentified person was hospitalized and is recovering.
Health officials say the person returned to Washtenaw County from traveling abroad at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on March 6. The person was contagious at the time.
The state advises anyone who was in customs or baggage claim in the airport’s terminal between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. March 6 to seek medical attention if they develop symptoms.
Measles is a viral infection that can lead to pneumonia, brain inflammation, hospitalization and death. Symptoms include high fever, runny nose, cough, reddened light-sensitive eyes, and a red raised body rash. The airborne virus is easily spread because people may be contagious before symptoms surface, and people remain contagious until several days after the rash appears.
Health officials say the best prevention for measles is the vaccine, which is available to people as young as 6 months.