World Health Organization warns of ‘relentlessly increasing threat’ of measles – CTV
Nov. 19, 2023
The World Health Organization (WHO) is warning of a “relentlessly increasing threat to children” across the globe from measles.
Last year, measles cases increased by 18 per cent to nine million worldwide, according to a joint report from the WHO and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Measles deaths jumped 43 per cent compared to the previous year, with 136,000 reported deaths in 2022. Most cases and deaths were among children in low-income countries, the report stated.
“The increase in measles outbreaks and deaths is staggering, but unfortunately, not unexpected given the declining vaccination rates we’ve seen in the past few years,” said John Vertefeuille, director of CDC’s Global Immunization Division, in a press release.
Measles typically begins with symptoms such as fever, cough, runny nose or watery eyes. The telltale rash appears several days after the first symptoms.
