DHAKA: More than 350 Bangladeshi children are suspected to have died from measles in fewer than two months, health authorities said on Saturday, as the country battles its deadliest measles outbreak in recent history.
Since March 15 doctors have struggled to contain a surge in infections, with over 47,000 suspected cases to date, according to data released by Directorate General of Health Services.
Though Bangladesh has made significant progress in vaccinations to tackle infectious diseases, coverage gaps during and after the chaos of a 2024 uprising that ousted the previous administration left its youngest generation badly exposed.
At least 61 people have died from measles and 291 others have died with measles-like symptoms, most of whom are children, health officials have confirmed.
The number of patients seeking treatment is still surging across Bangladeshi hospitals, including at the Shahid Sohrawardi Medical College Hospital in Dhaka, one of the city’s largest government-run healthcare facilities.
“Today, we have 180 patients admitted to our hospital, and this is the highest number since the measles outbreak began in the country,” Dr. Shehab Uddin, the hospital’s director, told Arab News.
“It’s a rapid surge. Just one month ago, the number of admitted patients daily was within 100.
Dhaka alone has seen over 21,600 suspected measles cases.
The current trend was “unprecedented,” he added. Doctors initially expected to be able to contain the outbreak within three weeks after the nationwide emergency vaccination drive was launched on April 20.
“We didn’t have any measles prevalence at this rate. It happened only due to the vaccination gap in the last two years. We can say that the mismanagement with the vaccination campaign triggered this measles outbreak,” Uddin said.
His hospital has scaled up operations to deal with the surging infections, including by adding isolation facilities and at least three wards dedicated for measles patients, with a total capacity of 200 beds.
“However, our health workers are overburdened and stretched out due to the continuous surge of measles patients. We are delivering services within stressful conditions,” said Uddin.
“It’s a state of hardship for us. Our doctors and nurses are under pressure with this huge number of patients.”
A nation of 170 million people, Bangladesh has been able to contain measles since the 1990s with routine vaccination — usually two doses given in early childhood, with the first administered at the age of nine months.
But as even small gaps in coverage can lead to outbreaks, supplementary mass immunization to prevent resurgence and boost population immunity has been conducted every four to five years.
After a missed mass campaign last year, the newly elected government started a nationwide immunization campaign in April, which is expected to reach 18 million children later this month.
“Already 17.8 million children received the vaccine while the target is to reach 18 million children all over Bangladesh,” Halimur Rashid, director of disease control at the Directorate General of Health Services, told Arab News.
“We hope to reach the target by May 20th.”
