2 new cases of measles on Vancouver Island have officials urging vaccination

The measles virus is seen through an electron micrograph. (C. S. Goldsmith; William Bellini, Ph.D.)

VICTORIA -- Two new cases of measles have been confirmed on Vancouver Island, bringing to 25 the number of recent infections in British Columbia.

Officials with Vancouver Island Health say people who may have been exposed to the highly contagious disease at two LifeLabs clinics in Victoria on Tuesday and Wednesday are being alerted, and two health units have been opened to provide vaccinations on Sunday.

However, officials say exposure to measles may also have occurred at 10 other places between March 27 and March 31, and in those cases immunization will no longer prevent infection.

Those locations include Camosun College, as well as several buses, a drug store, a mall and a fast-food restaurant in Victoria.

Anyone who may have been around someone with measles is being asked to monitor for symptoms such as fever, runny nose, diarrhea, red eyes and rash a few days later that starts on the face and spreads to the chest.

Along with five cases of measles on the island, 17 cases of the disease have been confirmed in the Vancouver area since February, as well as one between Burnaby and Hope, and two in 100 Mile House, in the southern Cariboo region of B.C.

Two doses of measles vaccine are needed to provide 99 per cent immunity against the disease.

Vancouver Island Health says 3,500 immunizations have been administered in the area in the past five weeks, which is more than double from last year.

It says the source of the latest cases is under investigation, but at this point it does not appear linked to two previous cases confirmed last week.