Measles (Rubeola)

Symptoms

Measles symptoms begin about 8 to 12 days after coming in contact with someone who has it. The first symptoms include cough, runny and stuffy nose, a general, sick feeling (malaise), red eyes with tearing (conjunctivitis), and a fever up to 105° Fahrenheit. Within two to four days, these symptoms are followed by Koplik's spots in the mouth, bluish-white or gray spots on a red background, seen inside the cheeks.

With a measles rash, you usually see non-itchy, pink or bright red spots, which always begin at the hairline and behind the ears, then spreads downward to the neck, trunk, arms and legs, palms and soles. The rash then begins to fade about four days later in the same order that it appeared, first from the head and neck, then the trunk and arms and legs. The fading rash may leave behind a temporary brownish discoloration or flakiness that clears two to three days later. Some patients also have big lymph nodes (swollen glands), diarrhea and vomiting.

Patients with HIV, or certain types of leukemia or lymphoma, are more likely to develop severe complications from measles, but may not develop the typical measles rash.