Measles continues to claim lives nearly three months after the end of a nationwide vaccination campaign, with the death toll surpassing 900 yesterday, suggesting the outbreak is far from over.
In the 24 hours to 8:00 a.m. yesterday, eight more children died with measles-like symptoms, bringing the total number of deaths to 902, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Of the total, there are 803 suspected measles deaths and 99 confirmed measles deaths.
The latest figures also show that the pace of deaths has not slowed significantly: the last 100 deaths were recorded in just 23 days, compared to 26 days for the previous 100, according to an analysis of DGHS data.
Health experts and doctors said that lack of vaccination, along with comorbidities, malnutrition and delays in seeking hospital care, are the main reasons behind the deaths.
They attributed the continued outbreak of the disease to the gap in vaccination coverage affecting about 40,000 children, infections among children outside the campaign’s target age group, and inadequate infection prevention and control measures.
At least 798 confirmed and suspected cases of measles were recorded in the 24 hours up to 8:00 am yesterday, taking the total number of cases to 1.59 lakh.
During this period, 700 patients were admitted to hospital due to measles or measles-like symptoms, taking the total number of hospitalizations to 1.23 lakh, according to the data.
Continued hospitalizations and deaths raise new questions about the effectiveness of the emergency vaccination campaign against measles and rubella, as doctors found that most patients hospitalized and those who died were not vaccinated.
Yesterday, this reporter spoke to doctors at the three main facilities treating measles patients: the DNCC Covid-19 dedicated hospital, the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) and the Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute.
Doctors at two of the facilities said the number of patients has been rising recently.
Asif Haider, administrative officer at DNCC Hospital, where more than 13,000 measles patients have received treatment, said the number of patients fell after the vaccination campaign in May, but has risen again in recent weeks.
He added that fewer than 300 patients remained in hospital after the vaccination campaign, but the number has now risen to nearly 400.
About 360 patients remained admitted yesterday, including 93 patients admitted within the past 24 hours.
He added that as many as 107 patients have died in the hospital so far, including two deaths in the past 24 hours.
In response to a question about the causes of deaths, he said that nearly 90 percent of the patients admitted to hospital were not vaccinated, while almost all of those who died were not vaccinated.
He noted that many children contracted other viral infections after recovering from measles, which led to pneumonia and eventual death.
A total of 2,239 patients have received treatment at Bangladesh Shishu Hospital, which has recorded 70 deaths so far.
Yesterday, 102 measles patients remained in the specialist hospital.
Two children died in the last 24 hours there.
In response to a question about the causes of the recent deaths, Mirza Muhammad Zia al-Islam, director of the hospital, said that most of the deaths were due to comorbidities such as heart and kidney problems.
When children with such problems contracted measles, their condition became critical.
He added that most children suffer from malnutrition and have not been vaccinated, which puts them at greater risk.
At IDH Hospital, the number of patients has increased over the past two or three days, according to its supervisor, Asma Khan.
She added that the number of deaths in the hospital remained at 53, as no new deaths were reported during the past two or three weeks, adding that most of the infected children had not been vaccinated.
Contacted, Director General of DGHS Pravath Chandra Biswas said they have taken up a sweeping campaign to expand measles coverage and it will be further strengthened to bring in unvaccinated children.
A purge campaign is a targeted follow-up vaccination effort conducted after the main campaign to identify and vaccinate people who missed the campaign.
Moreover, they have already directed all hospitals to strictly adhere to quarantine protocols to prevent the spread of infection, he told our correspondent yesterday.
