The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has warned that the measles outbreak is spreading faster across South Africa since being declared an outbreak in December 2022.
Also read: NICD warns of measles outbreak in 5 of South Africa’s provinces
The disease was declared an outbreak after it spread to five provinces with a total of 297 laboratory-confirmed cases, with at least 200 cases recorded within a single week.
There are now a total of 406 laboratory-confirmed cases recorded in five provinces across South Africa for the week ending 21 January 2023. The five provinces that are currently affected are Limpopo (149 cases), Mpumalanga (81 cases), North West (133 cases), Gauteng (25 cases), and The Free State (18 cases).
The age distribution of the latest results from NICD remains unchanged from previous results recorded and show’s that most confirmed cases are reported to be children, from the age of five to nine years old.
Parents are urged to have their children vaccinated. The World Health Organization (WHO) announced a noticeable decline in child vaccinations against measles.
“Measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus. Patients with measles present with fever and with a rash. The rash looks like small, red, flat spots over the body. The rash does not form blisters, nor is it itchy or painful. Other signs include cough, conjunctivitis (red eyes) and coryza (running nose). Complications of measles can include diarrhea, dehydration, brain infection (encephalitis), blindness and death. Complications are more serious in those who catch measles as young infants (under 2 years of age) and in children who are malnourished.”
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