The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has declared an outbreak of the highly infectious measles disease which has seen cases climb to 297.
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The disease was declared an outbreak last week after it spread to five provinces and the NICD recorded at least 200 cases within the week, bringing the total up to 297 laboratory-confirmed measles cases.
The first recorded case was at the beginning of October in Limpopo (128 cases), the disease has since spread across Mpumalanga (68 cases), Free State (7 cases), Gauteng (13 cases) and the North West (69 cases).
Parents are urged to have their children vaccinated. The World Health Organization (WHO) announced a noticeable decline in child vaccinations against measles.
According to WHO, 40 million children missed their first measles vaccine during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A statement from the NICD, “The number of measles cases in the country continues to rise. Prevention and control of measles outbreaks can only be achieved through vaccination. Caregivers and parents are advised to review their child’s vaccination records and confirm that they have received the measles vaccine.
“It is never too late to vaccinate – children who have not been vaccinated may receive the measles vaccine at any age over 6 months, and free of charge at primary health services. Clinicians across the country are urged to be on the lookout for measles cases. It is understood that the health departments in the respective provinces have commenced with or are planning immunisation campaigns.”
The latest results from NICD show that most confirmed cases are reported to be children, from the age of five to nine years old.
According to the Mayo Clinic, “Measles is highly contagious and typically begins with a mild or moderate fever, often with a persistent cough, a runny nose, inflamed eyes (conjunctivitis) and a sore throat and can lead to secondary infections like pneumonia which can be fatal to children.”
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