A child patient with measles is being treated at HCM City Children Hospital No.1. - Photo: Vietnam News/ANN
HANOI: Vietnam’s southern hub Ho Chi Minh City has declared a measles outbreak amid surging infection cases and three fatalities, local media reported.
This is the first time the city has declared such an outbreak.
It will launch a campaign to supplement measles vaccination for all local children aged one to five, regardless of previous vaccination record, Vietnam News Agency reported.
The vaccination ages might be expanded depending on the outbreak’s development, VnExpress reported.
Medical facilities will arrange designated examination areas for screening.
All cases of rash fever suspected to be measles will be tested within 24 hours.
From early this year until Aug 22, Ho Chi Minh City recorded 353 measles cases.
From 2021 to 2023, there was only one positive case, according to the city’s Disease Control Centre.
Eighty-five cases of fever accompanied by rash were reported last week, with 20 cases confirmed to be measles.
The highly contagious respiratory disease can spread rapidly following an incubation period of 7 to 21 days.
Medical experts have cautioned the disease could lead to serious complications, including pneumonia, encephalitis, otitis media, keratitis, diarrhoea and even death.
Measles can be effectively managed only when the community immunity rate reaches 95 per cent and each individual has received two doses of the vaccine. - Xinhua, Vietnam News/ANN
