"Couldn't Even Get the First Vaccine"... Measles Fear Spreads in Bangladesh as Cumulative Deaths Reach 424

Measles Outbreak Continues Since March
424 Cumulative Deaths, 7,024 Confirmed Cases

The number of cumulative deaths caused by measles and suspected measles symptoms in Bangladesh has risen to 424, as the outbreak that began in mid-March continues.

Measles. The Asia Business Daily DB

According to the Bangladeshi media outlet The Daily Star, as of 8 a.m. on May 13, nine children died from measles and suspected measles symptoms in the past 24 hours. As a result, the cumulative number of deaths due to measles and suspected measles symptoms since mid-March has reached 424.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) under Bangladesh's Ministry of Health, among the nine newly reported deaths, three cases were confirmed to be due to measles.

The total number of confirmed measles-related deaths has now increased to 68. All confirmed fatal cases were reported in Dhaka division.

During the same period, six additional deaths were attributed to suspected measles symptoms. Of these suspected cases, two occurred in Sylhet division, while the remaining four were reported in Dhaka, Chittagong, Mymensingh, and Khulna divisions, with one case each.

The cumulative number of suspected measles-related deaths has been tallied at 356.

In the past 24 hours, there were 87 new confirmed measles cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 7,024. During the same period, 1,105 new suspected cases were reported, with the cumulative number of suspected cases reaching 51,567.

Measles is a highly contagious, acute viral disease that affects people of all ages and is considered one of the leading causes of death among young children worldwide. Transmission occurs via airborne spread or droplets from the nose, mouth, or throat of infected individuals.

The media outlet also noted that nearly half of the 60 children who died from confirmed measles were under nine months old and thus were not eligible for routine immunization. The Bangladeshi government administers the first dose of the measles-rubella vaccine to children at nine months of age and the second dose at 15 months.

Fazle Rabbi Chowdhury, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at Bangladesh Medical College, explained that the high number of deaths among infants under nine months is due to the fact that breastfed infants are generally believed to retain immunity against measles up to at least nine months of age, thanks to antibodies passed from their mothers. For this reason, the first dose of the measles vaccine is administered at nine months.

However, not all infants maintain sufficient immunity until nine months of age. Research has shown that in some infants, antibody levels and immune protection begin to decline around six months. The maternal immunity gradually weakens between six and nine months, and one study found that approximately 26% of cases exhibited reduced protective effects during this period.

Experts stress that, to curb the spread of measles and protect all children, at least 95% of children should be vaccinated through ongoing special immunization campaigns and routine vaccinations. This corresponds to the level required for so-called herd immunity.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.