A number of people who were at a San Leandro restaurant earlier this month may have been exposed to the measles, which is on the rise across the United States, Alameda County health officials warn.
Those who were at Sons of Liberty Restaurant on Saturday, March 9, from 4:45 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. might have been exposed to the highly-contagious viral infection, health officials said.
They urge those present to contact their health provider right away, especially if they have an infant, are not vaccinated, pregnant or have a weakened immune system.
Officials believe the person was infected after a trip abroad and just recently confirmed their infection.
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Measles can take anywhere from seven to 21 days to appear.
"It’s a pretty long incubation period, so we know he did not contract it at Sons of Liberty," Alameda County Public Health Director of Clinical Guidance Dr. Kavita Trivedi said. "According to the [World Health Organization], many countries are currently experiencing high levels of measles transmission."
The owner of Sons of Liberty said his goal is to keep everyone safe and stressed that his restaurant is safe to dine at. He also said none of his employees have gotten sick since the exposure.
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This comes as the CDC recently warned doctors that there has been a dramatic rise in measles cases, both in the U.S. and abroad.
Health officials say there have already been 58 confirmed cases of measles in the U.S. this year. That’s the same number as all of last year.
UCSF’s Dr. Monica Gandhi said Alameda County did the right thing by alerting people so they can watch for symptoms, including a fever, runny nose, sore throat, and rashes.
“We’re beginning to worry that we are going to lose our what you call elimination status in the United States. We’re having reluctance about vaccination and all of that is adding up to these measles cases that we’re seeing,” said Dr. Gandhi. “It’s a combination of likely increasing rates of missing childhood vaccinations and then that imported rates and local transmission.”
About a week ago, UC Davis Medical Center had to contact and warn hundreds of people that they may have been exposed to measles after a child with a confirmed case had visited the emergency department in Sacramento.
In 2000, measles was declared eliminated in the U.S. And despite recent outbreaks -- health officials still consider measles eliminated.
The CDC is urging doctors and parents to vaccinate their kids against measles.
