Dhaka, June 12 (IANS) As Bangladesh grapples with an escalating measles outbreak, another child has died from the symptoms of the disease on Friday, raising the total number of confirmed and suspected deaths to 643 since March 15 this year, local media reported.

According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the death was reported in the 24 hours leading up to Friday morning.

The latest death from the disease was identified as suspected, Bangladeshi media outlet UNB reported.

Reports suggest that while the number of confirmed deaths remained at 92, the total number of suspected deaths climbed to 551.

The DGHS recorded a total of 1,027 suspected measles cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the overall tally of suspected cases to 84,266.

Additionally, 126 new confirmed cases were reported, increasing the total to 10,185 during the same period.

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 immunisation experts about vaccine effectiveness and coverage gaps, the country’s leading 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.

Last week, expressing grave concern over the worsening measles outbreak across the country, the Awami League said that the crisis was not a “natural disaster” but a “man-made failure of governance” that began during the tenure of the former Muhammad Yunus-led interim administration and has continued under the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government.

The Awami League alleged that the roots of this tragedy lie in “catastrophic decisions” taken during the interim government.

— IANS

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