Sterling and Entire Region Subjected To Measles Alert

State Delegates in this region and I want to alert you to an important cautionary health alert affecting people in Fairfax and Loudoun counties.

As you may have read in the newspapers or heard on television news broadcasts, Fairfax and Loudoun County health departments are informing people who were at various locations in Fairfax and Loudoun counties between April 23 and May 1, 2014 that they may have been exposed to a person with measles.

Northern Virginia area health officials are mounting a coordinated effort to identify people who may have been exposed.

Listed below are the dates, times and locations of the potential exposure sites associated with the case of measles:

Lotte Plaza, 13955 Metrotech Drive, Chantilly, VA 20151, Wednesday, April 23 between 7:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.
Chantilly Department of Motor Vehicles, 14950 Northridge Drive, Chantilly VA 20151, Friday, April 25 between 11:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.

CVS Pharmacy, 24795 Pinebrook Road, Chantilly, VA 20152, Sunday, April 27 between 11:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.; Tuesday, April 29 between 3:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Inova Dulles South Urgent Care Center and other businesses at 24801 Pinebrook Road, Chantilly, VA 20152, Sunday, April 27 between 11:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

Harris Teeter, 25401 Eastern Marketplace Plaza, Chantilly, VA 20152, Sunday, April 27 between 1:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

South Riding Pediatrics and other businesses at 25055 Riding Plaza, South Riding, VA 20152, Monday, April 28 between 10:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.; Tuesday, April 29 between 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.; Wednesday, April 30 between 3:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Target, 14391 Chantilly Crossing Lane, Chantilly, VA 20151, Monday, April 28 between 11:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.

Home Depot, 25000 Riding Plaza, Chantilly, VA 20152,Wednesday, April 30 between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

Inova Dulles South Radiology Imaging Center and other businesses at 24801 Pinebrook Road, Chantilly VA 20152, Wednesday, April 30 from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Inova Fairfax Hospital, 3300 Gallows Road, Falls Church, VA 22042, between Wednesday, April 30 at 5 p.m. and 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, May 1 in the following units/rooms only: Pediatric Medical and Surgery; Rooms 319 to 322 of Labor and Delivery; Psychiatry; O3 Family Centered Care; Apheresis; Diagnostic Radiology

Measles is a highly contagious illness that is spread through coughing, sneezing, and contact with secretions from the nose, mouth, and throat of an infected individual.

What should you do if you were at one of the above locations at the time specified?

If you have received at least one dose of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine in the past, your risk of being infected with measles from any of these exposures is very low.

If you have never received MMR vaccine, you may be at risk of measles. If you notice the symptoms of measles, immediately limit your exposure to others. Please call your primary health care provider to discuss further care.

What are the symptoms of measles?

Measles symptoms usually appear in two stages. In the first stage, most people have a fever, runny nose, redness of the eyes, and cough. The second stage begins around the third to seventh day when a red blotchy rash begins to appear on the face and spreads over the entire body. Little white spots, called Koplik spots, may also be seen on the gums and inside of the cheeks.

Call ahead before going to the office or the emergency room and tell your primary health care provider's office that you were exposed to measles.

Residents with additional questions about this measles investigation can call 1-877-275-8343 (within Virginia). For more information on measles, visit www.vdh.virginia.gov/Epidemiology/factsheets/Measles.htm