A pilot and a flight attendant working for low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan on Sunday tested positive for measles, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said, adding that it is investigating whether the infections are associated with recent cluster cases.
The two had come in contact with two other Tigerair flight attendants who had contracted the disease earlier this month, the CDC said.
The cluster cases were traced to a Taiwanese man who was infected with measles during a trip to Thailand early last month. He was diagnosed with the disesase after he went to Okinawa, Japan, on a Tigerair flight later in the month.
Five people who had come in direct contact with the man were confirmed to have measles, the CDC said.
However, the pilot and flight attendant both received measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccines on April 6 and April 8, respectively, so the CDC is conducting a DNA sequence analysis to distinguish whether the positive tests were caused by the vaccine or an infection, CDC Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) said.
Sometimes people develop rashes, coughing, rhinitis or fever within five to 12 days of receiving an MMR vaccine, he said, adding that the two suspected patients are quarantined at their homes.
If the two are confirmed to be infected with measles, it might imply a third wave of infection from the cluster cases, and the CDC would initiate enhanced disease prevention measures, he added.
The health conditions of 1,282 people who have had direct contact with the confirmed measles patients are being monitored by local health departments, the CDC said.
Tigerair said it has not scheduled any staff members with suspected measles symptoms to work, adding that it does not compromise on issues concerning flight safety, passengers’ hygiene and well-being, as well as corporate social responsibility.
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