The World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. public health agency warned on Wednesday that there is now a serious risk of measles spreading to diverse parts of the world as a result of COVID-19’s gradual fall in vaccine coverage and reduced disease surveillance.
One of the most contagious human viruses is measles, which can almost fully be avoided by immunisation. However, to stop outbreaks among communities, there must be 95% vaccination coverage.
According to a joint analysis from the WHO and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the COVID pandemic caused a record number of over 40 million children to skip a dose of the measles vaccine in 2021.
Although measles cases have not yet increased significantly compared to prior years, Patrick O’Connor, the WHO’s measles lead, told Reuters that it is time to take action.
We are at a turning point, he declared on Tuesday. ‘Trying to alleviate this is going to be very difficult over the next 12 to 24 months.’
The lack of an outbreak of cases despite expanding immunity gaps may be due to a mix of elements including cyclical nature of the disease and persisting social isolation policies, but O’Connor warned that this may soon change given the extremely contagious nature of the illness.
O’Connor noted that since the beginning of 2022, the number of significant disruptive outbreaks has increased, rising from 19 to nearly 30 by September. He added that he was especially concerned about certain regions of sub-Saharan Africa.
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