It has been 60 years since the vaccine was introduced against measles, a highly contagious viral disease that is transmitted through the air and is potentially fatal. Efforts to increase the coverage rate have been increasing since then. Until now. In recent years, the drop in the percentage of fully immunized children has led to an increase in infections, warns Unicef. In the case of Europe and Central Asia, this increase has been more than 3,000%, according to the latest data from the World Health Organization. Between January and December 5 of this year, 30,601 positive cases have been confirmed, compared to 938 in 2022. And “it is expected that cases in the region will continue to increase due to gaps in immunity,” denounces the UN agency for childhood, as this is the population group most at risk.
“Such a dramatic increase requires urgent attention and public health measures to protect children from this dangerous and deadly disease,” said UNICEF Director for Europe and Central Asia, Regina De Dominicis, in a statement. “The increase is considerable, but also because it started from a very low number,” explains Blanca Carazo, vaccine specialist and head of international programs at Unicef Spain. However, “these outbreaks are the best indicator that immunization has fallen,” says the expert. The main factors of this decrease in demand for vaccines are misinformation and mistrust, “which worsened during the covid-19 pandemic,” the interruption of health services and the weakness of primary care systems.
“Children who were not vaccinated during the pandemic have grown older, are no longer of the age to receive these vaccines and the health systems are not monitoring them. It's something we have to address. You have to identify them,” Carazo claims. “Measles is tremendously contagious, more than covid. One of the first actions in emergency situations is to vaccinate against this disease because it spreads very quickly,” he warns. For this reason, given the large growth in Europe and Central Asia, Unicef specifically asks the countries of this region to “urgently” reach all those unimmunized children, to intensify their efforts to rebuild confidence in vaccines and to prioritize financing immunization and primary health care services.
The highest rate of measles in the region, according to data reported by States to the WHO, is recorded in Kazakhstan. With 69 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, it is also the fourth country in the world with the highest burden of the disease. It is followed by Kyrgyzstan, which occupies second position in Europe and fifth globally, with 58 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. Complete the podium European Romania, with 9.6 infections per 100,000 inhabitants, and currently in the midst of a national outbreak, according to its authorities. In Spain, nine infections have been recorded between January and November 2023.
The world has also recorded a growth in measles infections reported by countries to the WHO, going from 171,444 last year to 247,289 in the first eleven months of 2023; There are almost 76,000 more. The real figures, indicates the organization, are much larger. “Overall, the number of cases reported reflects a very small proportion of the actual number occurring in the community. Many do not seek health care or, if diagnosed, they are not reported,” he notes. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The United States Department of Health (CDC) estimated infections at 9.2 million in 2022 (37 times more than those officially reported).
Measles causes a long-lasting weakening of children's immune systems, making them more vulnerable to other infectious diseases.
According to the CDC study published at the end of November, 22 million children did not receive a single dose of the vaccine – which consists of two to achieve complete immunization against measles – and another 11 million were missing the second; which resulted in an 18% increase in estimated cases compared to 2021 (7.8 million) and a 43% increase in deaths from this disease, with 136,216 deaths last year, according to their calculations.
There is no treatment for the disease, although there is therapy to relieve symptoms and avoid a serious condition that can cause death. But in the case of children, Unicef notes, the risk is greater, as it causes a lasting weakening of their immune system, making them more vulnerable to other infectious diseases, such as pneumonia.
Prevention is, therefore, essential, reminds the body. Despite the fact that the vaccine is cheap (less than one euro) and effective, 931,000 boys and girls in Europe and Central Asia did not receive the regimen in whole or in part between 2019 and 2021. And the coverage rate with at least the first injection fell from 96% in 2019 to 93% in 2022.
Worldwide, coverage stood at 83% last year, still below 86% in 2019, before the pandemic. Low-income countries, where the risk of death from measles is higher because access to the health system is more difficult, record the worst statistics, with only 66% of their population immunized against this disease. Of the 22 million children who had not received the first dose in 2022, more than half lived in 10 countries in the global South: Angola, Brazil, Ethiopia, the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Nigeria, Pakistan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
You can follow Future Planet in x, Facebook, instagram and TikTok and subscribe here to our newsletter.
#Measles #increases #Europe #Central #Asia #year #fall #vaccination