Measles is a very contagious illness caused by a virus. It spreads through the air when someone coughs or sneezes. After being exposed, it usually takes about 10 to 12 days for the first symptoms to show, and around 14 days for the rash to appear. Before the rash, a person often has a fever that starts low and can go as high as 103°-105°F, along with a cough, runny nose, and sometimes red eyes. Some people also get small blue-white spots in their mouths before the rash shows up.

The measles rash starts at the hairline and moves down to the face, neck, and then the rest of the body. It can look like small bumps and sometimes the spots can merge together. Other signs of measles can include not wanting to eat, diarrhea (especially in babies), and swollen lymph nodes. Serious problems can happen too, like ear infections, lung infections, brain swelling, seizures, or even death. While it's uncommon, vaccinated people can still get measles, but their symptoms might look different, like a shorter rash or mild symptoms without fever or cough or  pink eye.

Why should I have my child or teen vaccinated?

Vaccination is one of the best ways parents can protect their infants, children and teens from 16 common yet potentially harmful diseases. Vaccine-preventable diseases can be very serious, may require hospitalization, or even be deadly - especially in infants and young children.

Each year thousands of people in the United States die from vaccine preventable diseases, and many more are hospitalized.

As a parent information is everything, make sure you follow the links related to each vaccine to get more information as provided by the CDC. The information in these pages is subject to change periodically due to improvements or changes in the vaccines and new research developments.

Santa Teresa Children's Night Clinic offers the following childhood routine vaccines:

Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis (DTaP) (5/17/07)
Hepatitis A (7/20/16) UPDATED
Hepatitis B (7/20/16) UPDATED
Haemophilus Influenzae Type b (Hib) (4/2/15)
HPV - Gardasil-9 (12/2/16) UPDATED 
Inactivated Influenza (8/7/15)
MMR (Measles, Mumps, & Rubella) (4/20/12) [Interim]
MMRV (Measles, Mumps, Rubella & Varicella) (5/21/10) [Interim]
Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccines (MCV)
Serogroup B Meningococcal (MenB) (8/9/16) UPDATED
Pneumococcal Conjugate (PCV13) (11/5/15) 
Polio (7/20/16) UPDATED 
Rotavirus (4/15/15) 
Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis) (2/24/15)  
Varicella (Chickenpox) (3/13/08) [Interim]

Make sure to bookmark this page or subscribe to our informational alert system for announcements in changes with respect to your children's vaccinations.