North Bay-Parry Sound Health Unit reporting 11 cases of measles

CBC News

· Posted: Mar 27, 2025 1:26 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

The North Bay-Parry Sound Health Unit is monitoring 11 cases of measles, each originating from the archetypal lawsuit reported connected March 7. 

Dr. Carol Zimbalatti, the acting aesculapian serviceman of health, says she's not amazed to spot an summation successful cases. 

"Given that we are seeing the outbreak successful Ontario and that we person seen decreasing measles immunization rates, I don't deliberation this is surprising, however, it is concerning," Zimbalatti said. 

"Measles tin beryllium a precise contagious and precise superior infection, particularly successful young children and those who are pregnant."

Zimbalatti said the wellness portion isn't expecting the 11 section measles cases to make much infections wrong their district, arsenic each known contacts person been addressed. She said the measles cases originated from idiosyncratic who traveled to southwestern Ontario.

Ontario's main aesculapian serviceman of wellness has linked the southwestern Ontario outbreak to a ample Mennonite gathering successful New Brunswick past fall. 

While Zimbalatti confirmed Ontario's larger outbreak is related to this event, she said she couldn't sermon immoderate transportation to the section cases owed to the tiny colonisation involved. 

She added that determination person not been hospitalizations oregon admittance to the intensive attraction portion related to the outbreak successful North Bay-Parry Sound. 

"There is nary grounds that those cases oregon their contacts are starring to accrued hazard to the population," Zimbalatti said. 

Unlike different wellness units that person published elaborate vulnerability locations specified arsenic circumstantial restaurants and stores, North Bay-Parry Sound nationalist health has not released specified information.

"There haven't been immoderate nationalist vulnerability sites that person been identified. If we did place exposures wherever the wide nationalist would beryllium astatine risk, we would person been posting that information," she said, adding infected individuals are pursuing isolation protocols and not visiting nationalist spaces.

Zimbalatti said individuals with suspected measles should beryllium tested, but stressed that they should telephone their healthcare supplier oregon infirmary successful advance. This precaution is important to forestall imaginable exposure, fixed that measles is highly contagious for those who are not immunized.

Vaccination rates successful the district

She said determination are precocious rates of vaccination against the measles in her district among schoolhouse children, with 97 per cent of 17-year-olds and 92 per cent of seven-year-olds reported arsenic afloat vaccinated. 

However, Zimbalatti said vaccination rates for the big colonisation are little wide and apt lower. A 2024 study from Canada's main aesculapian serviceman of wellness suggests lone 87 per cent of adults person received immoderate measles vaccination.

"We person seen accrued telephone volumes to our vaccine preventable illness program, which is bully to spot that radical are pursuing the proposal and checking up connected their records," Zimbalatti said.

"Currently, it is manageable and betwixt healthcare providers and our existing clinics the measurement we are capable to accommodate the individuals who request to person an further dose."