FILE - A dose of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is displayed at the Neighborcare Health clinics at Vashon Island High School in Vashon Island, Wash., on May 15, 2019.
Image Credit: (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)
February 15, 2024 - 12:00 PM
Measles, once almost unheard of in recent years, is making a major comeback in Europe and spreading into Canada.
The best way to defend against it is through the MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella) vaccine given to babies and children as they enter school.
But the vaccine rate in Interior Health has dropped to 68.5% for two-year-olds, down from 85% in 2020.
The target for that age group is 90%, but according to data from the BC Centre for Disease Control the closest Interior Health got to that was 89% in 2012.
The rate for the Okanagan is 68% while Thompson-Cariboo-Shuswap comes in at 68.7%.
The target for seven year olds is 70%, but the region as a whole is only at 56.3% with the Okanagan at 53.2%. Thompson-Cariboo-Shuswap sits at 58.6%.
READ MORE: Measles deaths worldwide jumped 40% last year, health agencies say
“Current immunization rates are concerning because these diseases still occur and can spread easily,” an Interior Health news release read. “For example, measles cases have been reported in four U.S. states, including Washington, in 2024. There is currently a major outbreak of measles in Birmingham, England. Additionally, there have been outbreaks in many African and Asian countries.”
At least three cases have been recorded this year in Canada by the Public Health Agency of Canada, with two in Saskatchewan and one in Ontario.
The World Health Organization reported 42,200 measles cases in Europe last year with the rate of new cases growing late in the year.
It said more than 1.8 million European infants missed their vaccinations between 2020 and 2022.
READ MORE: UK officials warn low measles immunization rates could lead to tens of thousands of cases in London
“The COVID-19 pandemic led to many children missing out on vaccinations, due to supply chain disruptions, resources being diverted to COVID-19 response efforts and lockdowns limiting immunization services,” the WHO said in a Jan. 24 posting. “Misinformation about the safety of vaccines has also led to a decline in global vaccination coverage.”
There were several measles cases in Canada in 2023, the BC Centre for Disease Control said in an email to iNFOnews. Most were from people travelling overseas.
It also pointed to a web page on its site with details of 31 cases in BC in 2019.
Most were contracted by people returning from countries like the Philippines and Vietnam. In one situation, three children returned to Vancouver from Vietnam and infected 10 others.
“Measles is a highly contagious disease caused by the measles virus,” the BC Centre for Disease Control says on its website. “Complications and death can result from a measles infection, most commonly in infants less than 12 months old and in adults.”
Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose and watery, inflamed eyes. Small red spots with white or bluish white centres form in the mouth along with a dusky red, blotchy rash that begins on the face and spreads all over the body.
The rash begins on the third to seventh day of the illness and lasts four to seven days.
“To help address these low rates this year, extra clinics for immunization services will be introduced at community health centres; Kindergarten clinics are being piloted in some schools; and mobile immunization services will bring these services to select rural communities,” the Interior Health news release said. “In addition, students in Grade 10 to 12 can drop into clinics at school to get caught up on routine immunizations they have missed and ask public health nurses any questions they may have.”
Details of the new Interior Health vaccination campaign can be seen here and appointments at child health clinics can be booked here.
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