GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) voiced alarm Tuesday at the rapid spread of measles, with over 306,000 cases reported worldwide in 2023 — a 79% increase from 2022.
Natasha Crowcroft, a WHO technical adviser on measles and rubella, said that the WHO was extremely concerned about the measles situation.
She said that measles cases are dramatically under-reported, while the real number was far higher, AFP reported.
To get more accurate data, WHO models the numbers each year, with its latest estimate showing that there were 9.2 million cases and 136,216 measles deaths reported in 2022.
Such modeling has not yet been done for last year, but Crowcroft pointed out that 2022 had already seen a 43% jump in causalities from the year before.
Crowcroft warned that more than half of all nations are currently believed to be at high risk of measles outbreaks by the end of the year. Nearly 142 million children are susceptible to falling ill.
Measles’ Most Serious Complications
Measles is a highly contagious illness caused by a virus that attacks mainly minors. The most serious complications of the disease include brain swelling, diarrhea, blindness, and severe respiratory infections.
Crowcroft said that a major cause of the swelling numbers is the backsliding immunization coverage.
At least 95% of children need to be fully vaccinated against measles in a locality to prevent outbreaks, but international vaccination rates have dropped to 83%.
Crowcroft said that 92% of all minors who die from the virus live among less than a quarter of the global population, mainly in very low-income states.
