TUHIN SHUBHRA ADHIKARY

Bangladesh was successful in controlling rubella in 2018 and was supposed to eliminate measles and rubella from the country this year, but now it is struggling to deal with a measles outbreak.

Hundreds of children are now in hospitals with measles and related complications, and the authorities are scrambling to contain the surge of the highly infectious disease.

Experts said although the country has exhibited remarkable immunisation efficacy over the past few decades, vaccination gaps have left many children at risk.

In the absence of systemic reform, emergency measures like those taken in the current situation to control the measles outbreak will not yield significant benefits, they said.

A total of 118 suspected measles deaths, mostly children, have been reported since March 15, including five in the last 24 hours ending at 8:00am yesterday, according to the Directorate General of Health Services.

At least 8,534 suspected cases were reported nationwide since March 15, including 1,282 suspected ones in the last 24 hours, the directorate said.

As of yesterday, 2006 suspected measles patients, mostly children, were undergoing treatment at hospitals across the country, it said.

However, the DGHS has so far been able to test and confirm 20 measles deaths and 1,099 cases.

Samples from suspected measles patients are tested at reference laboratories in Dhaka, a process that takes a considerable amount of time. Meanwhile, suspected cases are included in the list, and confirmed cases are updated later, creating a discrepancy between the two figures.

Besides, rash and fever, the main symptoms of measles, are common to several other diseases, officials said. Therefore, not all suspected measles cases are ultimately confirmed, which contributes to the difference between suspected and confirmed deaths, they added.

The government on Sunday launched an emergency vaccination drive at 30 upazilas of 18 districts where the infection rates were relatively high.

On the first day, 76,123 children from six months to under five years were vaccinated, which is 95.8 percent of the first-day target, officials said.

Against this backdrop, the country is observing World Health Day with the theme “Together for Health. Stand with Science”. Different government and non-government organisations have planned programmes to mark the day.

UNMET TARGET

Prof Be-nazir Ahmed, a health expert and former director of disease control at the DGHS, said Bangladesh’s immunisation

SEE PAGE 5 COL 1