NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Theme : Health & Education
Paper : GS - 2
A measles outbreak in Mumbai has raised concerns amongst the country’s public health authorities. The city has reported more than 200 cases in the past two months and at least 13 children have lost their lives.
TABLE OF CONTENT
- Context
- Measles
- Signs,Symptoms & Transmission
- Reasons sought behind the sudden outbreak of Measles in India
- Government Initiatives
Context : A measles outbreak in Mumbai has raised concerns amongst the country’s public health authorities. The city has reported more than 200 cases in the past two months and at least 13 children have lost their lives.
Measles :
- Measles is a highly contagious viral disease.
- Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family and it is normally passed through direct contact and through the air.
- The virus infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body.
- Measles is a human disease and is not known to occur in animals.
Signs,Symptoms & Transmission :
- The first sign of measles is usually a high fever, runny nose, a cough, red and watery eyes, and small white spots inside the cheeks can develop in the initial stage.
- The most serious complications include blindness, encephalitis, severe diarrhea and related dehydration, ear infections, or severe respiratory infections such as pneumonia.
- Unvaccinated young children are at highest risk of measles and its complications, including death.
- Unvaccinated pregnant women are also at risk.
- Any non-immune person (who has not been vaccinated or was vaccinated but did not develop immunity) can become infected.
- Measles is one of the world’s most contagious diseases.
- It is spread by coughing and sneezing, close personal contact or direct contact with infected nasal or throat secretions.
Reasons sought behind the sudden outbreak of Measles in India :
- According to the state government data, only 41 per cent of the eligible children have been inoculated against measles in Mumbai.
- Vaccine hesitancy
- Parents, reportedly, are showing a disinclination to continue the inoculation regime for their children after they developed fever on being administered the first jab.
- Overworked public health professionals, including ASHA workers, have also had to combat vaccine hesitancy.
Government Initiatives :
- Mission Indradhanush: In recent years, the Centre’s Mission Indradhanush project has improved vaccine coverage and reduced delays between shots.
- Low coverage in last two years: WHO and UNICEF studies have shown that immunization programmes especially those focusing on DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus) and measles have taken a hit in low- and mid-income countries, including India, in the past two years.
- Missed shots during Pandemic restrictions: Early in the pandemic, the National Health Mission’s information system reported that at least 100,000 children missed their shots because of the restrictions on movement.
- India speeding up the immunization after the pandemic: Anecdotal reports do indicate that India’s universal inoculation programme picked up during the latter part of the pandemic. But measles is a highly contagious disease. Experts had cautioned that even a 5 per cent fall in the vaccination rate can disrupt herd immunity and precipitate an outbreak.
FAQs :
1. What are the First Symptoms of Measles?
Answer : The first sign of measles is usually a high fever, runny nose, a cough, red and watery eyes, and small white spots inside the cheeks can develop in the initial stage.
2. What is Measles?
Answer : Measles is a highly contagious viral disease.Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family and it is normally passed through direct contact and through the air.