Hershey Medical Center Warns Patients, Visitors Of Possible Measles Exposure

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HERSHEY, Pa. (KDKA) -- Patients and visitors at a Hershey, Pa., medical center may have been exposed to measles.

Anyone who was in or around the Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center's emergency department check-in area between 8:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Aug. 18 may have been exposed to the measles virus. Any patients or visitors who arrived or left through the emergency department check-in area during that time were possibly exposed to the virus.

A patient with symptoms consistent with measles arrived in the emergency department on Aug. 18. The patient was placed in a negative pressure room and the medical center took precautions to make sure the patient avoided contact with other individuals.

Blood test results came back on Friday and showed a measles diagnosis is very likely.

The medical center then took steps to identify patients, visitors and staff who may have been exposed to the virus and began to contact them individually.

According to the medical center, the risk of the infection spreading is "thought to be relatively low."

Signs and symptoms of measles include rash, high fever, runny nose, coughing, and red, watery eyes. Symptoms usually appear one to three weeks after infection.

The Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center can be reached at 1-800-243-1455.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 124 individual cases of measles confirmed in 22 states, including Pennsylvania, so far this year.