2019–2020 measles outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

2019-2020 measles outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
DiseaseMeasles
DatesEarly 2019 – August 24, 2020[1]
Confirmed cases380,766
Deaths
>7,018
African child with measles

In 2019, a measles epidemic broke out in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The epidemic started in early 2019 in the southeast corner of the DRC and then spread to all provinces.[1][2] By June 2019 the epidemic was reported to have exceeded the death toll of the concurrent Ebola epidemic.[3] By April 2020, it had infected more than 341,000 people and claimed about 6,400 fatalities.[4] This has primarily affected children under the age of five,[2] representing 74% of infections and nearly 90% of deaths.[5]

Response

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In response, a vaccination program had been set up by the Ministry of Public Health with the aim to vaccinate more than 20 million children under the age of five.[2][3] In 2018, the measles vaccination rate was 57%.[5] The effort is supported by the Measles & Rubella Initiative, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and GAVI, a vaccine alliance.[2][5] Also, Médecins Sans Frontières started conducting vaccination campaigns. Vaccination programs have been hampered by access to health resources, lack of resources, security issues, and mistrust.[6][2]

The measles outbreak in the DRC has been the largest and most fatal measles outbreak across the world in 2019.[2]

In April 2020, it was reported that due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the vaccination program for measles was suspended.[7]

On 24 August 2020, the outbreak was declared over with final results of over 380,766 cases and 7,018 deaths.[8]

2021 Flare-up

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By April 2021 Doctors without Borders had reported on more than 13,000 new cases in several provinces of the DRC since the beginning of the year.[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "DR Congo measles: Nearly 5,000 dead in major outbreak". BBC. 2019-11-21. Archived from the original on 2020-02-11. Retrieved 2019-11-22. Close to a quarter of a million people have been infected this year alone. The World Health Organization (WHO) says this is the world's largest and fastest-moving epidemic.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Catesby Holmes (2019-10-19). "Outbreaks of measles: compounding challenges in the DRC". The Conversation. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
  3. ^ a b "Congo declares measles epidemic after it kills more than Ebola". Reuters. 2019-06-20. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
  4. ^ Murray, Lisa (7 April 2020). "Measles: In Ebola's shadow, a quiet killer is on a rampage in DRC - Al Jazeera". Archived from the original on 10 May 2020. Retrieved 15 May 2020. Since the start of 2019, measles epidemic has infected more than 341,000 people and killed some 6,400 in the DRC.
  5. ^ a b c "As measles deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo top 4,000, UNICEF rushes medical kits to health centers and vaccinates thousands more children". UNICEF. 2019-10-09. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
  6. ^ "DRC struggles to contain measles outbreak". AlJazeera. 2019-10-30. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
  7. ^ "117 Millionen Kindern droht Ansteckung mit Masern". Der Spiegel. 14 April 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  8. ^ "DRC: More Ebola and plague cases reported, End of measles epidemic declared". 29 August 2020.
  9. ^ Hereward Holland (2 April 2021). "Measles resurgent in Congo eight months after epidemic declared over". Reuters. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
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