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number of Measles cases around the world Global vaccination efforts have seen cases drop by a dramatic 88 per cent between 2000 and 2024 – but cases have surged in dozens of countries in the past year and have still killed 95,000 people, the World Health Organization warns in a new report,
There are about 800,000 more infections in 2024 compared to pre-Covid levels in 2019, bringing the total to an estimated 11 million.
Nearly 60 countries reported large or disruptive measles outbreaks, nearly three times the number in 2021 and the highest since the pandemic began.
“Measles is the world’s most infectious virus and these data show once again how it can take advantage of any gaps in our collective protection against it,” WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement. statement,
“Measles does not respect borders, but when every child in every community is vaccinated against it, costly outbreaks can be avoided, lives can be saved, and the disease can be eliminated from entire countries.”
All regions except the Americas experienced at least one country in a major outbreak in 2024, with a 96 percent increase in the Eastern Mediterranean, 47 percent in the European region, and 42 percent in the Southeast Asian region compared to 2019.
The African region has seen a 40 percent drop in cases and a 50 percent drop in deaths over the same period, partly due to increased vaccinations, the agency said.
While the US achieved a 98 percent reduction in projected cases and saw measles deaths drop to “essentially zero”, outbreaks occurred in many countries as a result of undervaccinated communities and cases spread by travelers.
It led both Canada and North America To lose your elimination position last month,
America, where vaccine hesitancy has increased in recent years, May also lose its elimination status If cases continue to emerge in Arizona, Utah and the Southwest through January. have seen the year about 1,800 cases An additional 46 outbreaks were reported in 43 states.
By the end of last year, 82 countries had eliminated measles, with no endemic measles virus transmission for more than 12 months.
The report said the recent surge is linked to a decline in vaccination rates, which have fallen below the 95 percent threshold.
Two doses of measles vaccine are 97 percent effective against infection. Thus America reached the point of elimination early on.
The measles vaccine has saved nearly 59 million lives since 2000.
While WHO reported one of the lowest number of deaths since 2000, the agency said every death from a disease that could be prevented using a highly effective and low-cost vaccine is “unacceptable.”
Unvaccinated cases of measles can result in brain swelling, pneumonia, and blindness, as well as in individuals with weakened immunity. Children under five are most vulnerable,