UPDATE: Baby Confirmed As First Measles Victim In New Jersey; Exposure Risk Remains

State officials confirmed late Friday that a 1-year-old baby is the first confirmed victim of measles in New Jersey following a nationwide outbreak.

The state Department of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the 1-year-old baby in Jersey City did have they measles, but they cannot firmly link to the nationwide measles outbreak connected to Disneyland in California, according to nj.com.

It also means that people who were exposed to the Jersey City baby are at risk of getting measles through Saturday, according to NBC4.

The 1-year-old baby who not been vaccinated, and has since recovered. Health authorities do not recommend vaccinating children under 1 year old. Instead, they said a child should be vaccinated when they are between 12 and 15 months old, according to nj.com.

Residents of the building where the baby lives were notified of a potential measles exposure out of caution, and no one involved in the case was identified, nj.com reported.

New Jersey’s Gov. Chris Christie drew headlines this past week when he suggested that parents be given a choice whether to vaccinate their children or not. He has since backed off those remarks.

>>Read more: WATCH: Critics Pounce On Christie For Measles Comments

In Pennsylvania, local schools, following the advice of state officials, warned people who have not been vaccinated against measles to protect themselves after the nationwide outbreak.

A case of measles has been confirmed in Cumberland County, Pa., health officials said this week. The infected person was at numerous public locations in the Shippensburg and Chambersburg area from Jan. 24 to Jan. 27, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

“Measles is a potentially very serious and highly contagious virus,” said Acting Physician General Dr. Rachel Levine of the Pennsylvania Department of Health. “This case underscores the importance of having all children appropriately immunized according to recommended guidelines.”

The symptoms of measles generally appear about seven to 14 days after a person is infected. The first signs are high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Complications from measles can include ear infection, diarrhea and pneumonia, inflammation of the brain and even death, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Measles can also cause miscarriages or premature delivery in pregnant women.

The following people are at the highest risk of getting the measles:

• Infants under a year old who are too young to have received the vaccine
• People born after 1957 who received only one dose of the MMR vaccine
• People who have refused vaccination
• People from parts of the world with low vaccination rates
• People vaccinated from 1963 to 1967 with an inactivated vaccine and who haven’t been re-vaccinated

What you should know about the measles, according to health officials:

• Simply being in the same room with someone who has measles is sufficient to become infected.
• Usually about 8-12 days (but up to 21 days) after exposure, measles begins with a mild to moderate fever accompanied by cough, runny nose, and red eyes.
• Two or three days later, the fever spikes, often as high as 104-105°F.
• At the same time, a red blotchy rash appears, usually first on the face, along the hairline and behind the ears.
• The rash rapidly spreads downward to the chest and back and, finally, to the thighs and feet.
• Most students with measles are sick enough that they miss at least a week of school.
• One in every 20 people with measles develops pneumonia; more rarely, serious, even life-threatening complications can occur.
• The MMR vaccine is effective and safe, and two doses are recommended for all children.
• If you think you or your child may have the measles, call your doctor before showing up the office so that your medical provider can take precautions to make sure you don’t further spread the virus.