Measles cases in South Carolina rise by 124 to 558, state health department says

Jan 16 (Reuters) – The South Carolina health department reported 558 measles cases related to the ongoing outbreak in the state on Friday, 124 additional cases since its last update on Tuesday.

The widening outbreak has been reported in the northwest part of the state, which includes Greenville and Spartanburg, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Health.

There are currently 531 people in quarantine and 85 in isolation. The latest end of quarantine for these is February 16, the state health department said.

Of those infected, 483 were unvaccinated, six were partially vaccinated with one of the recommended two-dose measles-mumps-rubella vaccines, 13 were fully vaccinated and 56 had unknown vaccination status.

Most cases were reported in children in the five to 17 age group followed by those below five years of age.

State epidemiologist Linda Bell said in a media briefing on Wednesday that vaccination rates in some South Carolina schools have dropped to as low as 20%, raising concerns about potential measles outbreaks.

Measles is a highly contagious viral infection that causes symptoms such as fever, cough and a characteristic rash. It can also lead to severe complications like pneumonia and encephalitis.

(Reporting by Mariam Sunny and Siddhi Mahatole in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Alan Barona)