This year’s measles outbreak has hit a suburban Chicago daycare, where five babies under age 1 have been infected, Illinois health officials said.
The disease has been confirmed in two of the infants, while lab results are pending for three others who have been diagnosed based on symptoms. Officials say they expect more cases associated with KinderCare Learning Center in Palatine, Ill., the daycare where the cases were discovered.
Health officials said they don’t know of any link between the Chicago cases and an outbreak traced to Disneyland, where the bulk of the cases have originated.
“At this time, the source of infection for the children is not known. Health officials have taken extra precautions to limit the spread,” the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Cook County Department of Public Health said.
More than 100 cases of measles have been confirmed in the U.S. this year. On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 102 cases in at least 14 states have been reported. Another case was confirmed in the District of Columbia this week, although officials said it came from overseas.
Until now, just one case of measles had been reported in Illinois this year.
About one in 12 children don’t get the measles vaccine at the recommended time. Children should get their first dose of the vaccine at 12 to 15 months, and a second shot at 4 to 6 years, according to the CDC, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians.
Cases of the highly infectious disease spiked in 2014, totaling 644 cases by the end of the year. There are typically fewer than 100 cases in the U.S. in a given year.
