Measles Outbreak Kills 113 Bangladeshi Children Amid Vaccination Gaps

Bangladesh launched an emergency vaccination campaign after measles killed at least 113 people, mostly children.

“Bangladesh says it suspects measles has killed at least 98 children in the past three weeks, official data show, with the capital, Dhaka, ramping up vaccination efforts in the worst affected areas”

Al Jazeera

More than 7,600 suspected cases were reported since mid-March, with over 900 confirmed.

Al Jazeera

No campaigns were conducted since 2020 due to COVID-19 and political upheaval.

Nearly one-third of infections were in infants under nine months, not yet eligible for routine vaccination.

Routine coverage dropped from 83.9% in 2019 to 81.6% in 2023, below the 95% target.

Kushtia district reported multiple deaths with over 300 children hospitalized.

BBC

Vaccine shortages and disrupted campaigns contributed to the outbreak.

The campaign aims to immunise 1.3 million children across 30 upazilas.

The outbreak raised concerns in India despite strong immunisation coverage.

“Bangladesh launched emergency vaccination campaign after a suspected measles outbreak killed at least 113 children in the past six weeks, official data showed Sunday”

Daily Sabah

Measles can spread rapidly in communities with low vaccination rates.

The WHO estimates 95,000 measles deaths occur globally every year.