Another deadly virus. As the world fights COVID-19, measles deaths rise, and vaccinations are thwarted

Experts attribute the disappointing situation to the fact that many children do not receive the necessary double vaccination of MCV1 and MCV2 vaccines on time, which provide protection against measles. To reliably stop the spread of the virus, 95% of the population must be vaccinated. The global average vaccination rate for MCV1 is 85%, MCV2 – 71%.

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“Science has long known how to prevent measles outbreaks. We need to work together to get everyone vaccinated,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus.

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In 2020, measures to combat Covid-19, for all their importance, slowed down vaccination against other diseases.

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In 26 states, routine measles vaccinations for 94 million people were postponed due to quarantine, and were resumed in only eight of them (Brazil, Nepal, the Philippines, South Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Somalia).

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“Covid-19, dangerous in itself, is also causing an increase in the incidence and death of measles, which also knows no boundaries,” said Gail McGovern, president of the American Red Cross.

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Photo author, Getty Images

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“The fight against one deadly disease should not come at the expense of another. It is imperative to continue immunization against all infections for which there are vaccines,” said Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund Henriette Fore.

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“Although health care around the world is swallowed up by Covid-19, the fight against other infections must not be weakened. Measles is 100% preventable, no one should die from it,” said Seth Berkeley, head of Gavi, an international organization that vaccinates people in poor countries.

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The measles virus is extremely contagious, warns American epidemiologist Robert Linkins.

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On 6 November, WHO and UNICEF called on governments to take urgent action against the spread of measles and polio.

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“The fight against Covid-19 is critical. But there are other deadly diseases that threaten millions of people in the poorest countries,” the document says.

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Specialized UN bodies are particularly concerned about the situation in Nigeria, the largest African country with a population of 200 million.

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The measles vaccination rate there is only 54%. In two southern states, Delta and Enugu, over 70 people have died in recent days from an outbreak of yellow fever. In neighboring Benu state, 12 people have died from an unidentified infection.

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Covid-19 in Nigeria, according to probably incomplete data, fell ill with 64,366 people and 1,160 of them died.

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“It’s unthinkable that we’re seeing the biggest measles outbreaks in a generation when we have a safe, economical and proven vaccine. No child should die of a vaccine preventable disease,” says Foundation President United Nations by Elizabeth Cousins.

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“Anti-vaccination”

Difficulties with vaccination against measles and some other diseases also exist in developed countries. Only not because of poverty, but because of myths, prejudices and fakes.

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The anti-vaccine movement has been around for as long as the vaccines themselves. In Britain, back in 1772, pastor Edmund Massy became famous for his sermons, who called smallpox vaccinations a devilish thing in them.

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Photo author, Getty Images

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In recent years, it has been boosted by British physician Andrew Wakefield, who, in a 1998 article, argued that combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccines caused autism in children.

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Although these articles were later refuted, and Wakefield himself was stripped of his medical license for scientific misconduct, the seeds he sown sprouted.

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The percentage of children vaccinated against measles in the United Kingdom fell from 92% in 1996 to 84% in 2002 and in parts of London to 60%. As a result, six years later, it was officially recognized that measles had returned to Britain, and deaths reappeared.

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The same thing happened in other countries that were thought to have long since gotten rid of measles and where Wakefield’s theory spread. In Ireland in 2000, one and a half thousand people fell ill, three of them died.

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In France in 2008-2011 more than 22 thousand people fell ill with measles.

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In December 2014, 125 people contracted measles at Disneyland California, after which the state of California passed a law making it mandatory to vaccinate children.

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In Russia, an outbreak of measles happened in 2018. The number of cases has jumped 3.5 times. Experts attributed this to increased public resistance to vaccination.

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According to the Moscow Department of Health, among the children who were not vaccinated against measles in the city, in almost 80% of cases, the reason was the fundamental refusal of their parents.

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According to polls, 22-27 percent of citizens regularly oppose vaccinations in Russia.

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