In 1980, 2.6 million people died from measles, and in 1990, 545,000 died due to the disease; by 2014, global vaccination programs had reduced the number of deaths from measles to 73,000. Despite these trends, rates of disease and deaths increased from 2017 to 2019 due to a decrease in immunization. Signs and symptoms
Symptoms typically begin 10–14 days after exposure. The classic symptoms include a four-day fever (the 4 Ds) and the three Cs—cough, coryza (head cold, fever, sneezing), and conjunctivitis (red eyes)—along with a maculopapular rash. Fever is common and typically lasts for about one week; the fever seen with measles is often as high as  40 °C (104 °F).Kopliks spots seen inside the mouth are diagnostic for measles, but are temporary and therefore rarely seen. Koplik spots are small white spots that are commonly seen on the inside of the cheeks opposite the molars. They appear as "grains of salt on a reddish background." Recognizing these spots before a person reaches their maximum infectiousness can help reduce the spread of the disease.The characteristic measles rash is classically described as a generalized red maculopapular rash that begins several days after the fever starts. It starts on the back of the ears and, after a few hours, spreads to the head and neck before spreading to cover most of the body, often causing itching. The measles rash appears two to four days after the initial symptoms and lasts for up to eight days.
Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease caused by measles virus. Symptoms usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days. Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than 40 °C (104 °F), cough, runny nose, and inflamed eyes. Small white spots known as Kopliks spots may form inside the mouth two or three days after the start of symptoms. A red, flat rash which usually starts on the face and then spreads to the rest of the body typically begins three to five days after the start of symptoms. Common complications include diarrhea (in 8% of cases), middle ear infection (7%), and pneumonia (6%). These occur in part due to measles-induced immunosuppression. Less commonly seizures, blindness, or inflammation of the brain may occur. Other names include morbilli, rubeola, red measles, and English measles. Both rubella, also known as German measles, and roseola are different diseases caused by unrelated viruses.Measles is an airborne disease which spreads easily from one person to the next through the coughs and sneezes of infected people. It may also be spread through direct contact with mouth or nasal secretions. It is extremely contagious: nine out of ten people who are not immune and share living space with an infected person will be infected. Furthermore, measless reproductive number estimates vary beyond the frequently cited range of 12 to 18. The NIH quote this 2017 paper saying: "[a] review in 2017 identified feasible measles R0 values of 3.7–203.3".