More than half of the world may suffer from measles outbreaks by the end of the year – WHO – News
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More than half of the world’s countries will be at high or very high risk of measles outbreaks by the end of the year unless urgent preventive measures are taken.
The World Health Organization warned about this, writes Reuters.
The number of measles cases is increasing in most regions, mainly due to missed vaccinations during the years of the COVID-19 pandemic, when health systems were overwhelmed and behind schedule vaccinations against preventable diseases, the WHO said.
“Based on data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we see that more than half of all countries in the world will be at high or very high risk of measles outbreaks by the end of this yearNatasha Crowcroft, Senior Technical Advisor on Measles and Rubella, said at a press briefing in Geneva.
She called for urgent action to protect children and said governments were “not making the commitment” given the accompanying challenges, such as economic crises and military conflicts.
Measles is one of the most contagious infectious diseases that is transmitted by airborne droplets and mainly affects children under the age of five. According to the WHO, this can be prevented with two doses of vaccines. Since 2000, vaccination has prevented more than 50 million deaths.
According to WHO data, the number of cases of the disease last year has already increased by 79% to more than 300,000.
Outbreaks have been reported worldwide, with the exception of North and South America, the WHO added.
Death rates are higher in poorer countries because of weaker health systems, Crowcroft said, adding that outbreaks and deaths are also a risk in middle- and high-income countries.
“We’ve had many outbreaks of measles around the world, and middle-income countries have really been affected. And we worry that 2024 will be like 2019“, she concluded.
As a reminder, since 2019, the measles vaccine is free for all Ukrainians.
The vaccination calendar states that a child should be vaccinated against measles at 12 months (first dose of the PKK vaccine) and 6 years (second dose).
The Ministry of Health also explained how to find out if a child has been vaccinated against measles if the documents are lost.
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