Measles alert for Melbourne’s south and outer east after infected man visited Centrelink Dandenong

PEOPLE who have visited school basketball stadiums in Knoxfield and Rowville are among those being warned to look out for signs of measles after a man was diagnosed with the highly contagious virus. See the full list of places in Melbourne’s south east that he visited.

PEOPLE in Melbourne’s south and outer east — including those who visited a busy Centrelink office and attended sports events — have been warned to look out for signs of measles after a man was diagnosed with the highly contagious virus.

Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton said a man in his 40s visited places in Melbourne’s south and outer east between February 8 and 12 while infectious, and the man may have been infected at Centrelink in Dandenong between January 22 and February 2.

Locations the man visited include:

— Thursday, February 8

Centrelink Dandenong, 8am-5pm

— Friday, February 9

Centrelink Dandenong, 8am-5pm;

Mountain Gate Cricket Club, Ferntree Gully, 6-8pm

Dan Murphy’s Rowville, 8.30pm

— Saturday, February 10

Fairhills High School basketball stadium, Knoxfield, 9.30-10.30am

Rowville Secondary College basketball stadium, Rowville, 2.30-3.30pm

— Sunday, February 11

Belgrave Cricket Ground, 11.30am-6.30pm

— Monday, February 12

ABC Costume Hire, Wantirna South, 3-4pm

Measles has an incubation period of up to 18 days so people who visited these locations might not show symptoms until Tuesday, March 6.

Dr Sutton said people who developed the illness over the next week should alert their doctor or hospital emergency department.

“Anyone developing symptoms is advised to ring ahead to their general practitioner or hospital first and tell them that they may have measles so that appropriate steps can be taken to avoid contact with other patients,” he said.

The measles rash usually begins 3-7 days after the first symptoms.

Measles is a highly infectious viral disease that can cause serious illness, particularly in very young children and adults.

People can develop pneumonia and other serious complications from the disease, and often need to be hospitalised.

The illness usually begins with common cold symptoms such as runny nose, red eyes and a cough, followed by fever and rash, Dr Sutton said.

“The characteristic measles rash usually begins 3-7 days after the first symptoms, generally starting on the face and then spreading to the rest of the body,” he said.

The disease is now uncommon in Australia because of the widespread use of the measles vaccine, but Dr Sutton said it was important to continue immunising children because of the risk that infection could be brought in by travellers arriving from overseas.

The infected man visited Fairhills High School basketball stadium on February 10.

Dr Sutton said most cases of measles in Victoria were linked to international travel, with the disease more prevalent in countries overseas.

The measles vaccine is recommended on the National Immunisation Program at 12 months and again at 18 months.

Anyone who is unvaccinated is at risk of contracting the illness.

Adults aged 26 to 52 have lower immunisation coverage than younger adults and children, and therefore most cases are in this age group.

Most people over the age of 52 will have been exposed to measles in childhood, and therefore will be protected.

For more information on the disease, click here.