Measles hit blokes hard

Disease exposure at same workplace

TWO out of three people infected with measles in this year’s shock outbreak were blokes – and nearly all of them were non-Aboriginal, new figures show.

According to Centre for Disease Control NT’s Disease Control Bulletin, released this week, 30 cases of confirmed measles were reported in the Darwin region, of which 21 were men and two identified as Aboriginal.

It’s the biggest measles outbreak in the NT since 2014, a horror year which saw 50 confirmed cases across the Territory.

CDC director Vicki Krause said a large number of those infected were men because they were all infected at the same workplace.

“Some of the exposure was in a male-dominated workplace,” she said.

“This really was a large outbreak. Some years we have no cases.”

Dr Krause said while the outbreak was now “well and truly” over, there were some lessons for Territorians.

“We want to make sure that we don’t have another outbreak,” she said.

“The real message is that people who are travelling or going to airports – that’s a very high-risk setting.

“We want people to make sure they’re vaccinated and talk to their doctor.”

Dr Krause said that anyone who didn’t know with absolute certainty they’d had two measles vaccinations should see their GP.

“There’s no harm in getting a third,” she added.

In her report, CDC’s Rowena Boyd said on March 6 health experts were notified of a single case of lab-confirmed measles, which someone had contracted from a mate who’d travelled to Vietnam. By early April, there were 30 confirmed cases in the Darwin region.

The youngest person to get the measles was seven months old and the eldest 48 years old.

All of the measles cases were in the Greater Darwin area, including 16 confirmed in Palmerston residents.

According to Ms Boyd, the delay in diagnosis of the first case of measles, from the overseas traveller, was the reason the outbreak was so large.

“Measles circulation in the NT was not recognised until diagnosis of a second case and public health response to prevent further cases was delayed,” she said.

“This really was a large outbreak” CDC DIRECTOR VICKI KRAUSE