On Wednesday, a woman gave birth in Lubbock, Texas, in the middle of a deadly, rapidly growing measles outbreak. The doctors didn’t notice that the young mother was recognized and she had measles until she worked.
By then, other new mothers, newborn babies and their families at Lubbock University Medical Center Children’s Hospital had been exposed to the virus without their knowledge and was considered one of the most contagious in the world.
Hospital staff will implement emergency masking policies and a young injection of three-day-old injections of immunoglobulin, an antibody that helps the vulnerable immune system fight infections.
A 2021 study found that this treatment was extremely effective in preventing exposed newborns from becoming ill.
“These babies didn’t ask for this revelation,” said Chad Curry, training chief at the University Medical Center EMS. “But at the end of the day, this is the only way we can protect them.”
Neither curry nor the representative of UMC could give an exact number of exposed newborns.
It is unclear when the woman tested positive for measles. Public health officials are throwing a wide net to contact anyone who may have been exposed to this particular patient. Virus particles can live in the air or on the surface for up to 2 hours.
This is a setback for frontline public health officials looking to stop an escalating outbreak.
At the end of last week, Katherine Wells, director of public health at Lubbock’s Health Department, said it felt like the outbreak was beginning to be under control. At the time, the case appeared to peak. The doctor’s office was well versed in avoiding other patients and ensuring patients who are likely to be exposed to measles.
The new development said in an interview Friday that “it feels like we’ve returned to one side.”
This week, the outbreak expanded from Texas and New Mexico to Oklahoma, where two incidents were confirmed. New Mexico has reported 35 cases.
West Texas remains the epicenter of the outbreak that began last month. On Friday, the Texas Department of Health reported 259 measles cases. Most (201) are in children and teenagers.
One child of a six-year-old girl from Gaines County, Texas, has passed away. Another New Mexico adult death is under investigation. Neither of them were vaccinated from measles.
Overall, current cases are above the total reported in 2024.
Curry, who recently administered some shots of immunoglobulin to newborns, emphasized that if those babies are old enough, they should be vaccinated.
“This is only a short, short period of time,” he said. “They still need to get vaccinated, that’s the only full protection.”
