Measles Cases in Maharashtra: 40 kids killed, 10,000 affected by measles this year; Maharashtra worst hit | India News
NEW DELHI: At least 40 children in India have died this year due to measles and around 10,000 kids were affected by disease, junior health minister Bharati Pravin Pawar informed the Parliament recently in reply to a question.
Maharashtra, Pawar said, has witnessed maximum number (3,075) of measles cases and 13 deaths due to the disease, followed by Jharkhand where 2,683 cases and eight deaths have been confirmed. Gujarat, Haryana, Bihar and Kerala have reported 1,650, 1,537, 1,276 and 196 cases, respectively. The number of deaths reported by Gujarat, Haryana and Bihar stands at nine, three and seven, respectively.
Officials in the health ministry said some of the cases and deaths reported are not laboratory confirmed, but have been included in the list as the clinical symptoms of patients were similar to those with the disease and they were residing in areas with high burden of the disease.
Measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus. It spreads through coughing and sneezing. There is no specific anti-viral treatment for measles; only vaccines are available to prevent disease.
Last month, the Centre had advised the Maharashtra government to administer an additional vaccine dose of measles and rubella containing vaccine (MRCV) to all children aged between nine months to five years in areas where there had been a recent increase in measles cases in the state. This dose would be in addition to the primary vaccination schedule of first dose at 9-12 months and second dose at 16-24 months.
The government also recommended one dose of MRCV to be administered to all children who are six to nine months old if measles cases in the younger age group are above 10% of the total cases in any region.
“Since this dose of MRCV is being given to this cohort in ‘outbreak response immunisation’ mode, therefore, these children should be covered by the first and second dose of MRCV as per the primary measles and rubella vaccination schedule,” a letter sent by P Ashok Babu, a joint secretary in the Union health ministry, to principal secretary (health) in the Maharashtra government, stated.
According to the state minister for health, an upsurge in cases of measles was reported last month. “Taking note of the upsurge of cases from certain districts and cities of Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Kerala, the union ministry of health deployed multi-disciplinary central teams comprising public health specialiststo assess the situation and provide technical support to the states,” Pawar said in Lok Sabha.
The central teams deployed noted the need for further strengthening disease surveillance activities, ramping up immunisation with measles-containing vaccines, managing vaccine hesitancy through intensive community awareness to cover all un-immunised children, improving case management through timely detection, she added.
Maharashtra, Pawar said, has witnessed maximum number (3,075) of measles cases and 13 deaths due to the disease, followed by Jharkhand where 2,683 cases and eight deaths have been confirmed. Gujarat, Haryana, Bihar and Kerala have reported 1,650, 1,537, 1,276 and 196 cases, respectively. The number of deaths reported by Gujarat, Haryana and Bihar stands at nine, three and seven, respectively.
Officials in the health ministry said some of the cases and deaths reported are not laboratory confirmed, but have been included in the list as the clinical symptoms of patients were similar to those with the disease and they were residing in areas with high burden of the disease.
Measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus. It spreads through coughing and sneezing. There is no specific anti-viral treatment for measles; only vaccines are available to prevent disease.
Last month, the Centre had advised the Maharashtra government to administer an additional vaccine dose of measles and rubella containing vaccine (MRCV) to all children aged between nine months to five years in areas where there had been a recent increase in measles cases in the state. This dose would be in addition to the primary vaccination schedule of first dose at 9-12 months and second dose at 16-24 months.
The government also recommended one dose of MRCV to be administered to all children who are six to nine months old if measles cases in the younger age group are above 10% of the total cases in any region.
“Since this dose of MRCV is being given to this cohort in ‘outbreak response immunisation’ mode, therefore, these children should be covered by the first and second dose of MRCV as per the primary measles and rubella vaccination schedule,” a letter sent by P Ashok Babu, a joint secretary in the Union health ministry, to principal secretary (health) in the Maharashtra government, stated.
According to the state minister for health, an upsurge in cases of measles was reported last month. “Taking note of the upsurge of cases from certain districts and cities of Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Kerala, the union ministry of health deployed multi-disciplinary central teams comprising public health specialiststo assess the situation and provide technical support to the states,” Pawar said in Lok Sabha.
The central teams deployed noted the need for further strengthening disease surveillance activities, ramping up immunisation with measles-containing vaccines, managing vaccine hesitancy through intensive community awareness to cover all un-immunised children, improving case management through timely detection, she added.
