Measles outbreak spreads

Health experts are urging the public to get vaccinated after the number of confirmed cases of measles in the South Island increased to 12.

Canterbury medical officer of health Dr Ramon Pink, who heads an outbreak team in Christchurch, said there were seven cases of measles in Christchurch, four in Dunedin and one in Nelson.

Three cases each from Dunedin and Christchurch were under investigation, he said.

Christchurch District Health Board chief executive David Meates said measles could be life threatening, with one in 10 people requiring hospital treatment.

‘‘Measles is so infectious that unimmunised people who come within sneezing range of an infected person have a 90 per cent chance of becoming infected.’’

The outbreak team meets every day to assess the latest information and to track the spread of the disease.

Pink said the team was checking the immunisation status of all the people who came into contact with the suspicious cases. Anyone suspected of having the disease is quarantined for 14 days.

‘‘Measles is a serious illness with serious consequences.’’

It was important people were vaccinated to mitigate the risk of being infected. Pink said in the latest case of measles from the Southern DHB, the person travelled extensively between Wellington, Hamilton and Christchurch.

He was not aware of any other cases of measles in passengers exposed to a 20-year-old woman who had the disease on Air NZ flights between Queenstown and Christchurch.