According to the agencies, countries with the largest measles outbreaks in the past year include Somalia, Yemen, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Ethiopia.
Insufficient measles vaccine coverage is the major reason for outbreaks, wherever they occur.
In the joint press release, they said the increase in measles cases is a worrying sign of a heightened risk for the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases and could trigger larger outbreaks, particularly of measles affecting millions of children in 2022.
They also noted that pandemic-related disruptions, increasing inequalities in access to vaccines, and diversion of resources from routine immunization are leaving too many children without protection against measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases.
In addition to these disruptions, the risk of large outbreaks has increased as communities relax social distancing practices and other preventive measures for COVID-19 implemented during the height of the pandemic, they said.
The agencies are concerned that outbreaks of measles could also forewarn outbreaks of other diseases that do not spread as rapidly.
Apart from its direct effect on the body, which can be lethal, the measles virus also weakens the immune system and makes a child more vulnerable to other infectious diseases like pneumonia and diarrhoea.
Speaking, the UNICEF Executive Director, Catherine Russell, stated that measles is a dangerous and potentially deadly disease.
“It is also an early indication that there are gaps in our global immunization coverage, gaps vulnerable children cannot afford,” she stated.
“It is encouraging that people in many communities are beginning to feel protected enough from COVID-19 to return to more social activities. But doing so in places where children are not receiving routine vaccination creates the perfect storm for the spread of a disease like measles,” she added.
In 2020, 23 million children missed out on basic childhood vaccines through routine health services, the highest number since 2009 and 3.7 million more than in 2019.
The WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus said that the COVID-19 pandemic has interrupted immunisation services, adding that health systems have been overwhelmed hence, deadly diseases have been resurgent including measles.
“For many other diseases, the impact of these disruptions to immunisation services will be felt for decades to come.”
“Now is the moment to get essential immunization back on track and launch catch-up campaigns so that everybody can have access to these life-saving vaccines.”
It was noted that as of 1 April 2022, 57 vaccine-preventable disease campaigns in 43 countries that were scheduled to take place since the start of the pandemic are still postponed, impacting 203 million people, most of whom are children.
Of these, 19 are measles campaigns, which put 73 million children at risk of measles due to missed vaccinations. In Ukraine, the measles catch-up campaign of 2019 was interrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and thereafter due to the war.
Routine and catch-up campaigns are needed wherever access is possible to help make sure there are no repeated outbreaks as in 2017-2019 when there were over 115,000 cases of measles and 41 deaths in the country – this was the highest incidence in Europe.
source: healthwise
