Measles on the rise

Authorities sound the alarm about infected persons on public bus

It is mostly children who contract measles. There has been a noticeable increase in the number of cases in Upper Austria this year.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com, krone.at-Grafik)

Three people infected with measles were in Wels between December 13 and 17. In the primary care center Marchtrenk, in the hospital and on the bus line 600. The authorities are now sounding the alarm primarily because of the bus passenger. The recent increase in measles cases in Upper Austria is striking.

This year, there are noticeably more measles cases nationwide: 513 confirmed cases have been registered, 90 of which are in Upper Austria. Last year there were "only" 186 nationwide. 112 infected people were treated in hospitals this year, four had to be cared for in intensive care units.

Who was on the bus?
The district authority of Wels-Land raised the alarm on Thursday evening in order to contain the spread of the contagious disease, as there had already been another case: "On Monday, 16 December 2024, at around seven o'clock in the morning, an unknowingly infected person who had fallen ill with measles in the meantime was on the bus on line 600 from Marchtrenk in the direction of Wels main station - bus terminal, and at around 5.05 pm from Wels main station - bus terminal in the direction of Marchtrenk. Due to the high infectiousness of this disease, it is possible that other people have been infected with the measles virus." 

Watch out until the beginning of January
The authority advises people who were at the above-mentioned location at the above-mentioned time and do not have immunity from two measles-mumps-rubella vaccinations or from a previous measles infection to monitor their state of health and to check their measles vaccination status and update it if necessary. If symptoms such as high fever, dry cough, rhinitis, conjunctivitis and inflammation of the nose and throat occur by January 6, 2025 - 21 days after contact, which is the incubation period - those affected should inform their doctor by telephone. Do not go to the doctor's surgery or hospital yourself to prevent contact and possible transmission to other people.

Cases exclusively in Upper Austria
It is striking that our federal state was the only one in which measles cases occurred in the previous week. Eight have been counted since November. Most recently, a warning was sent out from Neuhofen an der Krems, where a measles patient was in a guesthouse.