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Bangladesh made huge progress on measles but now children keep dying
BBC • • general
Key Points:
- Bangladesh experienced a sudden and severe measles outbreak starting in March 2024, resulting in nearly 750 deaths, mostly children, and over 120,000 suspected and confirmed cases, reversing previous progress in measles elimination.
- The outbreak has overwhelmed hospitals, with wards operating at more than double capacity and critical shortages in beds, oxygen, and vaccines, exacerbated by delayed vaccine orders amid political turmoil and restructuring of procurement processes.
- Factors contributing to the surge include disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic, lack of recent mass vaccination campaigns, overcrowding, and holiday travel, highlighting the dangers of interrupted vaccine coverage.
- An emergency vaccination campaign launched in April has inoculated over 18.4 million children, slowing reported cases and deaths, but Bangladesh continues to record about 1,000 suspected cases and multiple deaths daily.
- The crisis underscores the human cost of vaccine shortages and health system strain, with families facing financial hardship and loss, as exemplified by the deaths of infants like Arafat and Maliha despite medical efforts.
