South Carolina could declare measles outbreak over by April 26, health official says

By Siddhi Mahatole and Mariam Sunny

March 25 (Reuters) - South Carolina could declare its ongoing measles outbreak over by April 26 if no additional infections are reported, the state's top epidemiologist said during a briefing on Wednesday.

Here are some details:

• The total number of measles cases remain at 997, with no new cases reported in the state in a week, said Dr. Linda Bell, South Carolina's epidemiologist.

• The outbreak, which began in October and is the largest in the country in decades, has been slowing, helped by strong vaccination efforts.

• "The possibility that we could end this outbreak and have measles introduced again from an external source is still a risk and why we will remain vigilant for surveillance for all cases," Dr. Bell said.

• The South Carolina Department of Public Health said two people remain in quarantine and none are currently in isolation.

• Under state and federal guidelines, measles outbreaks are declared over only after 42 days without a new infection, double the 21‑day incubation period, indicating transmission has been stopped.

• Three disease detectives from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Epidemic Intelligence Service were deployed earlier this month to help analyze the massive data generated to better ‌understand transmission chains.