Emerging global epidemiology of measles and public health response to confirmed case in Rhode Island.

Measles is a highly contagious viral disease and rapid identification and control of cases/outbreaks are important global health priorities. Measles was declared eliminated from the United States in March 2000. However, importations from endemic countries continued through out the last decade and in 2011, the United States reported its highest number of cases in 15 years. With a global snapshot of current measles epidemiology and the persistent risk of transnational spread based on population movement as the backdrop, this article describes the rare event of a measles case identification in the state of Rhode Island and the corresponding public health response. As the global effort for measles elimination continues to make significant progress, sensitive public health surveillance systems and strong routine immunization programs will be important to ensure we maintain local and regional control.