Peak between winter and spring
The measles situation is showing signs of increasing in some provinces and cities, especially near the Lunar New Year 2025. Many children, especially young children who have not been vaccinated or have not been fully vaccinated, have been hospitalized in critical condition due to complications of measles.
Specialist Doctor I Pham Ngoc Nuong - Head of Pediatrics Department, Hoan My Cuu Long Hospital (Can Tho) - said that at the Pediatrics Department of Hoan My Cuu Long Hospital, the situation is alarming when the number of children coming to see a doctor and receive treatment for measles in recent months has increased dramatically, 35 times higher than the same period last year.
The Pediatrics Department has just admitted a 3-year-old child (Thoi Lai district, Can Tho city) to the hospital due to a high fever for 5 consecutive days, red rash, severe cough, and wheezing. The child was diagnosed with measles with pneumonia complications, and doctors quickly and actively treated the child with a combination of many measures.
Notably, most of the cases were in children aged 7 months to 2 years who had not been fully vaccinated. In addition, many children aged 4-7 years also contracted the disease because they had not been vaccinated or had not received enough doses, and some children were only 2-3 months old and were infected by their mothers who had measles during pregnancy.
According to statistics from Can Tho Children's Hospital (Can Tho), the measles outbreak began in early August with a sudden increase in the number of cases, many severe cases requiring mechanical ventilation. Since the beginning of 2024, the number of inpatients has been more than 2,300, and outpatients more than 1,700.
Specialist Doctor II Huynh Hung Dung - Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases, Can Tho Children's Hospital - informed that the measles cases recorded at the hospital were due to not being vaccinated or not being fully vaccinated, which is also the cause of complications such as pneumonia and respiratory failure.
“The peak of measles will fall between winter and spring. In recent months, the hospital's medical team has been on duty to treat children, preventing dangerous incidents,” Dr. Dung added.
Take the initiative to get your child vaccinated.
According to Dr. Nuong, measles can spread very quickly and has many dangerous complications. Any person without immunity can be infected. Dangerous complications of measles include pneumonia, otitis media, encephalitis, myelitis, myocarditis, corneal ulcers, diarrhea, etc.
"Parents should pay attention to signs that their child needs to go to the hospital immediately, such as: persistent fever that does not respond to antipyretics; labored breathing, rapid breathing, retracted breathing, and retracted breathing; neurological signs: convulsions, impaired perception, restlessness, lethargy, signs of dehydration, and frequent vomiting," Dr. Nuong advised.
To effectively prevent measles, families need to proactively vaccinate children between the ages of 9 months and 14 years who have not been vaccinated or have not received enough doses of measles vaccine to fully and on schedule.
Faced with the complicated situation of measles, Chairman of Can Tho City People's Committee Tran Viet Truong signed and issued an official dispatch to the Director of the Department of Health regarding the serious implementation of tasks and solutions to prevent and control measles in the city.
The Chairman of the People's Committee of Can Tho City requested to ensure adequate vaccine sources and carry out measles vaccination for target groups. Closely monitor the measles situation in the city; proactively monitor and promptly detect cases of the disease to thoroughly handle the outbreak; prevent it from spreading and breaking out.
