Between 1 January 2016 and 21 July 2017, the Romania National Center for Communicable Disease Control and Control has reported 8,246 measles cases and 32 deaths (computer translated).
Last week, the Health Ministry and the Interior Ministry started a vaccination campaign against measles.
There are about 180,000 unvaccinated kids in Romania, according to the Health Ministry. Only 10% refuse vaccination, whereas the rest of them don’t even reach a doctor. The Health Ministry currently has over 500,000 measles vaccine doses, which should be enough until the end of the year.
Measles is one of the most contagious of all infectious diseases; approximately 9 out of 10 susceptible persons with close contact to a measles patient will develop measles. The virus spreads when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The virus can live for up to 2 hours in the air or on surfaces.
People with measles usually have a rash, high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes. Some people also get an ear infection, diarrhea, or a serious lung infection such as pneumonia. Although severe cases are rare, measles can cause swelling of the brain and death.
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