TROY — Officials at the Miami County Public Health Department have received reports of a second new case of measles in Miami County.

“Our first one was Tuesday, Feb. 20,” Health Educator Vicky Knisley-Henry said. “We just had our second one confirmed over the weekend.”

“At this point, we don’t have any other exposures, so that’s good,” she said.

The two cases appear to be connected, rather than separate infections, Knisley-Henry said. Additional cases have also been reported in Montgomery County, as well as in several other states.

“None of us here in Miami County could remember the last case we had,” Knisley-Henry said. “Montgomery County said their last one was in 2005.”

Early symptoms of measles can seem similar to a cold or the flu, she said, with a rash developing later.

“It starts out like any other seasonal illness with fever, cough, congestion,” Knisley-Henry said. “Then after a few days, a rash will appear.”

“You’re most contagious four days prior to the start of the rash, and four days after the start of the rash,” she said.

A measles vaccination is part of the standard MMR vaccine, Knisley-Henry said, although it is unknown if either of the patients infected in Miami County had been vaccinated.

“We have seen vaccine hesitancy since COVID, but we can’t definitively say it’s due to lack of vaccine,” she said.

More information on measles can be found online at the Miami County Public Health Department website at www.miamicountyhealth.net.