DHAKA — Bangladesh is facing its deadliest measles outbreak in decades, with more than 1,000 children dead and 187,484 infections recorded since March, exposing serious gaps in vaccination coverage, Channels Television reported on Wednesday.
Figures from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) put the death toll at 1,002, highlighting the severity of an outbreak affecting a country of about 170 million people despite an ongoing emergency immunisation campaign.
Health authorities said more than 18 million children have so far received measles vaccinations, but about four million others were missed during the campaign. DGHS spokesman, Zahid Raihan, acknowledged that the programme failed to achieve the level of population immunity needed to halt transmission.
The vaccination gap has left pockets of vulnerable children through which the highly contagious disease continues to spread. Measles is transmitted mainly through coughing and sneezing and can lead to severe complications, including breathing difficulties and brain swelling, with young children particularly at risk.
Beyond immunisation, health authorities identified child malnutrition as another major factor capable of worsening the impact of the disease. Raihan said efforts to contain the outbreak would therefore have to combine continued vaccination with measures addressing underlying vulnerabilities among children.
The crisis is unfolding alongside a surge in dengue infections, placing additional pressure on Bangladesh’s health facilities. On Tuesday alone, nine people died from dengue and 1,571 patients were hospitalised, while the country has recorded 45,475 cases and 130 deaths since January.
The figures point to a widening public-health emergency in which Bangladesh is simultaneously battling vaccine-preventable childhood deaths and a mosquito-borne disease surge, putting hospitals and health authorities under exceptional strain. Channels Television reported that officials have continued searching for children missed by the vaccination campaign as they work to contain the measles outbreak.
