A 40-year-old unvaccinated woman in Pennsylvania died Saturday, most likely because of measles complications, the Jefferson County coroner, Greg Furlong, said Sunday.
The news comes as Pennsylvania faces a rapidly expanding outbreak that has already sickened more than 670 people and hospitalized 124. The state department of health reported two deaths related to the outbreak last month, which set off a frenzied debate over whether the deaths were a result of measles or merely coincided with the infection.
In this woman’s case, the immediate cause of death was respiratory failure “due to suspected measles,” according to a preliminary death certificate viewed by The Times. Mr. Furlong said that testing had not yet confirmed the woman had measles, though she had many of the symptoms of the virus — including the telltale rash that often starts as flat red spots on the face and travels down the body — and had recently been exposed to someone with measles. A nasal swab will be sent to the state laboratory to be tested for measles, Mr. Furlong said.
The woman had several chronic medical conditions that made her vulnerable to severe complications from measles. She had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or C.O.P.D., and was on 24/7 supplemental oxygen.
The state health department has not included the death in its official tally but has been in close contact with Mr. Furlong, he said.
While most measles cases are mild, roughly one in five unvaccinated people in the United States who contract the virus lands in the hospital, often for complications such as pneumonia, severe dehydration and brain swelling. The virus is especially dangerous for young children, adults older than 20 and those who have a compromised immune system.
Measles deaths are extremely rare in the United States. But the virus’s recent resurgence has caused a handful of fatalities. Two school-aged children and one adult died last year from measles complications, the first such deaths in the country in a decade.
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