By NewsDesk   @bactiman63

In a follow-up on the world’s largest measles outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) measles outbreak continues to grow and expand.

Image/geralt

Since the beginning of the year through Dec. 2, a total of 269,079 suspected measles cases, including 5,430 deaths (CFR 2%) have been reported from all 26 provinces in Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Since Nov. 11, 53 new health zones have confirmed epidemics.

This outbreak has already caused more deaths compared to the ongoing Ebola Virus Disease outbreak.

WHO notes that in addition to DRC, several other countries in the African region are also experiencing measles outbreaks. The underlying factor for the measles outbreaks in the African region is the inability of the vaccine administration systems to reach vulnerable children, rather than low uptake of the vaccines by the recipients – an increasing phenomenon seen in the developed world.

Some of the reasons for the low immunization coverage in the African region include inadequacies in healthcare systems and social dislocation due to armed conflicts, poverty, other disasters, etc.

Nigeria issues Lassa Fever Public Health Advisory

Measles: Global deaths exceed 140K in 2018

MALARIA: Is it getting better, worse or the same?

Chikungunya reported in Djibouti, Precautions advised