Three-year-old child dies of measles in Shikarpur

SHIKARPUR: A three-year-old child has died of measles in the Shikarpur district, sources said on Sunday.

According to sources, during the last 15 days, the deadly measles outbreak claimed the lives of three children in the district while several dozens of children have been infected in the epidemic.

Sources further said locals running pillar to post for measles vaccine, which is mostly unavailable in hospitals of the district due to shortage.

Earlier, in Jacobabad two children have died and scores hospitalized due to measles, a lethal disease for babies and young children, which generally peaks in summer.

According to doctors, respiratory disease is considered to be a highly virulent infection. Nearly 1 to 3 of every 1,000 children infected with measles are likely to die from respiratory and neurological complications. Symptoms of the disease usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days.

Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than 40 °C (104 °F), cough, runny nose, and inflamed eyes. Small white spots may form inside the mouth two or three days after the start of symptoms.

According to the World Health Organization, measles cases worldwide tripled from January to June in 2020. About 365,000 cases were reported worldwide this year, the highest since 2006.

WHO stated that there are 6.7 million suspected measles cases worldwide. According to the World Health Organization, measles killed 109,000 worldwide in 2017 alone.

Director of WHO, Immunizations O’Connor blamed poor health care and misconceptions about vaccines for the growing infectious disease.

Brian called communities to play their part in delivering accurate information about measles. He said that instead of moving forward we went back and forth.

Measles is a highly contagious viral disease. It remains an important cause of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine.