Health teams scramble to contain spread of measles in central and southern Alberta
170 cases identified in province since outbreaks began in March
Calling the measles outbreaks "concerning," the medical officer of health for central Alberta says a flurry of work is going on behind the scenes to rein in cases and prevent deaths.
As of midday Wednesday, Alberta had reported a total of 170 cases since the outbreaks began in March.
The highest concentration of cases are in the central zone, south zone and north zone — parts of the province with the lowest vaccination rates.
The central zone now has 65 cases. The south zone has reported 74 cases, and the north zone has 21. Calgary and Edmonton zones have each reported five cases.
"The main thing we're trying to prevent is deaths," said Dr. Ifeoma Achebe, the lead medical officer of health with Alberta Health Services in the central zone.
As of Monday, two people had been hospitalized, and later released, since the outbreaks in the central zone began, she said.
Provincial data, which was last updated April 19, shows a total of nine people hospitalized across Alberta since the cases began in March.
There have been no deaths as a result of Alberta's measles outbreaks this year.
"I'm quite concerned. That's why we're taking all the measures that we're taking to address the situation," said Achebe.
The central zone emergency operations centre is holding regular meetings to discuss the measles outbreak.
A key focus for public health teams is contact tracing and ensuring contacts, who are not immunized, isolate to prevent further spread.
"I can tell you the volume is quite high," said Achebe, noting people can start spreading the virus before they even develop symptoms.
Another complicating factor is that measles is highly contagious. It can hang in the air for up to two hours after an infected person leaves a location.
"Whenever there's a case there's usually a high number of contacts that have been previously exposed before the person even knows he or she was a case. That's a lot of work. Sometimes hundreds of individuals needing to be contacted and isolated."
AHS is working to boost vaccination rates in the zone.
"We're seeing the outbreak in areas where we have … low immunization rates," said Achebe.
Immunization clinics in Two Hills and Vegreville have expanded access, offering appointments on evenings and weekends, she said.
Public health teams are also reaching out to schools and communities where the measles cases are centred, she said.
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"Measles is such an infectious pathogen … that we will see these numbers climb more despite huge efforts by public health to contain this," said Dr. Cora Constantinescu, a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at Alberta Children's Hospital, speaking on CBC Radio's Alberta at Noon on Wednesday.
According to Constantinescu, when an exposure occurs in a region where vaccination rates are low, you can have an explosion of cases.
"You see a little bit of that, too, in the way it has spread across our province," she said.
"Our south zone and central zone numbers are the highest and when you look, historically, that's where some of the lowest immunization uptake rates are. Whereas in Calgary and Edmonton, we have higher immunization rates and you see the numbers are a bit lower."
Provincial data from 2023 shows that 57.7 per cent of two-year-olds in the central zone were up-to-date with two doses of the measles vaccine.
Some more local geographical areas were much lower. In Two Hills, for example, it was 24 per cent.
In the south zone, 59.6 per cent of two-year-olds were up-to-date that year. The north zone had 57.5 per cent coverage for children in that age cohort.
Infectious disease experts say an overall 95 per cent coverage is needed for population-level protection against measles.
Constantinescu said a number of factors will impact the size of the outbreak, including the public health efforts, whether people are coming forward when they have symptoms and whether they stay home when asked to isolate.
The south zone has confirmed 74 cases so far this year.
"When we see these numbers, obviously it does create a bit of alarm," said Shannon Vandenberg, the assistant dean of nursing in the faculty of health sciences at the University of Lethbridge.
According to Vandenberg, a nurse educator who has researched vaccine hesitancy, there are a number of reasons people opt not to immunize their children, including unwarranted fear about the ingredients, peer pressure among groups of people and the rise of misinformation.
Addressing those concerns on an individual family level takes time, she said.
"It's not just a simple conversation with someone to say, 'OK, let's get you to immunize.' It's a lot of conversations over a long period of time," Vandenberg said.
"We're not going to magically raise our immunization rates … to 95 per cent in a week, right? We just aren't. So that's the challenge. Can we raise them enough to curb the spread, to slow the spread, to prevent it from spreading into new communities?"
Zahra Shajani is urging Albertans to reach out for information from reliable sources such as public health nurses, family doctors and governments.
"One of the biggest pieces is understanding and getting the right information from the right sources," said Shajani, an associate dean in the faculty of nursing at the University of Calgary who has worked as a public health nurse. "There's a lot of misinformation, perhaps some myths out there, especially online, related to measles and about vaccine safety."
It's important, she said, that parents understand how dangerous measles can be.
"This isn't like a flu or cold. It's a virus that's being misunderstood."
Measles can lead to serious complications, including pneumonia, brain swelling and even death.
According to the provincial government's website, between one and three out of every 1,000 people with measles will die.
Earlier immunizations for infants
Babies living in central, south and north zones are being offered an early dose of the measles vaccine at six months of age due to the outbreaks.
The Alberta government's website says measles is "highly preventable," noting immunization is the most important form of protection.
Two doses of the measles vaccine, it states, offers nearly 100 per cent protection.
The province recommends people who cannot be immunized — including young babies, pregnant Albertans and those who are immunocompromised — take steps to protect themselves.
"You can reduce the risk of acquiring measles by avoiding communities with significant measles spread, only socializing with people who you know are immunized, and avoiding indoor gatherings."
AHS said public health teams in the central zone have seen a significant increase in inquiries about measles immunization. Appointments increased 40 per cent during the first three weeks of April compared to March
Meanwhile, in an effort to keep potential measles cases out of the hospital and prevent spread to vulnerable Albertans, AHS is also planning stand-alone measles assessment centres in the northeastern part of the zone, where a lot of the cases are located, according to Achebe.
Measles symptoms include:
- High fever.
- Cough.
- Runny nose.
- Red eyes.
- Blotchy, red rash that appears three to seven days after the fever starts. In darker skin colours, it may appear purple or darker than surrounding skin.
Alberta Health provides detailed information on measles case counts, symptoms, free immunizations and possible exposure locations here.
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