Dhaka, June 11 (IANS) Three more children died due to measles-like symptoms in Bangladesh in 24 hours until 8 am on Thursday, taking the total number of confirmed and suspected deaths in the country to 642, local media reported.

The latest three fatalities were identified as suspected measles deaths, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). With the latest fatalities, the number of suspected measles deaths has increased to 550 while the number of laboratory-confirmed measles deaths remained unchanged, the United News of Bangladesh (UNB) reported.

A total of 1,110 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, raising the total number of suspected cases in Bangladesh to 83,139.

Meanwhile, 132 new confirmed cases were reported, raising the total number of laboratory confirmed measles infections in Bangladesh to 10,059.

Since March 15, 68,056 patients with suspected measles have been admitted to hospital in Bangladesh. Among these patients, 64,293 have recovered, according to the DGHS.

Bangladesh’s severe measles outbreak continues to spread despite government claims that vaccination coverage has exceeded 100 per cent of the targeted children, raising concerns among immunization experts about vaccine effectiveness and coverage gaps, leading Bangladeshi daily ‘Dhaka Tribune’ reported.

More than a month after a nationwide emergency measles vaccination drive concluded, hospitals across the country admit over 1,000 children daily with measles or measles-like symptoms, while fatalities continue to rise.

The persistent rise in cases has alarmed public health experts, who said that vaccination coverage does not necessarily translate into protection unless children develop sufficient immunity.

“Measles transmission should decline significantly once vaccine coverage exceeds 90 per cent. If vaccination has truly reached the reported level, then infections should have fallen much more sharply by now,” Dhaka Tribune quoted Be-Nazir Ahmed, former director of the government’s disease control branch, as saying.

According to Be-Nazir Ahmed, official targets may not accurately reflect the true size of the eligible children.

“In some cases, coverage may appear to be 100 per cent on paper while thousands of children remain unvaccinated in reality,” he added.

–IANS

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