Toronto Public Health says it is investigating an outbreak of measles in the city.
Four cases of the disease are currently being investigated, Toronto Public Health said in a news release Monday. The cases involve two children under two years old and two adults from different families.
“At this point in the investigation, no source case has yet been identified and there are no known links or contact between the cases,” the agency said in its release.
Health officials are currently following up with known contacts of those who are infected as well as others who may have come in contact with them.
Toronto Public Health said the risk to the general population is low as most people are vaccinated against measles. Nonetheless, the agency said people should be aware that the disease is circulating in the city.
“The important thing that we would like to emphasize is that measles is a preventable disease with immunization,” said Dr. Lisa Berger, Toronto’s associate medical officer of health. “We suggest that everybody in Toronto check their records for themselves and for their families to make sure they’re up to date with their immunizations.”
According to the city’s release, infants under one year of age, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems can get very ill with measles.
Symptoms of the measles include a high fever, cold-like symptoms (cough/runny nose), sore eyes or sensitivity to light and a red rash lasting four to seven days.
Toronto Public Health said it’s especially important to do check immunizations records if travelling, particularly to the United States, where several states are experiencing measles outbreaks.
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