Bangladesh is facing an alarming health situation, as the measles outbreak that began in March has so far caused the deaths of 344 children, while the number of cases continues to increase at an alarming rate.
According to the General Directorate of Health Services, 11 deaths have been recorded in the last 24 hours alone. Four of them were confirmed by laboratory tests as being infected with measles, while seven others showed typical symptoms of the disease.
As of March 15, 65 of the victims have been confirmed by laboratory testing, while the rest have shown clinical signs of infection.
Health authorities report that 282 new cases of the measles virus have been confirmed in one day, while another 1,278 children with symptoms have been hospitalized.
In total, 49,159 children have shown symptoms of measles in the Southeast Asian country since the outbreak began. Of these, 34,909 have been hospitalized and 6,819 cases have been confirmed through laboratory tests. More than 30 children have been discharged from hospitals after treatment.
Measles is a highly contagious, but vaccine-preventable, viral infection. Initial symptoms include fever, cough, and runny nose, followed by a characteristic rash.
Faced with the worsening situation, in early April the government of Bangladesh, with the support of UNICEF, WHO and GAVI, launched an emergency vaccination campaign against measles and rubella.
According to UNICEF, the campaign aims to protect over 1.2 million children aged six months to five years in 18 of the country's 64 administrative regions, as part of a broader strategy to restore vaccination coverage and strengthen the health system in the face of future epidemics.
