In Ho Chi Minh City, just 3 days after the City People's Committee issued a decision to announce the epidemic, the vaccination campaign for all children aged 1-10 who have not received enough measles vaccine doses was deployed across the city from August 31, 2024.

In the first 10 days (from August 31, 2024 to September 9, 2024), the campaign vaccinated 19,821 children aged 1 to 5 years old (accounting for 32.6%) and 5,260 children aged 6 to 10 years old (accounting for 8.3%) of the total number of children subject to vaccination. Thus, up to 70% of children aged 1-5 years old and almost the entire group of children aged 6-10 years old (subject to vaccination in the campaign) have not been vaccinated.

Up to 70% of children aged 1-5 and almost the entire group of children aged 6-10 (who need to be vaccinated in the campaign) have not been vaccinated.

Meanwhile, in just the first week of the school year, the City has recorded measles outbreaks (2 or more cases) in 5 primary schools in 4 districts. It is expected that many new measles outbreaks will continue to appear in schools in the coming time if the vaccination campaign does not promptly cover cases of children who are not immune.

Therefore, more than ever, the city needs to speed up the implementation of the measles vaccination campaign in the area and basically complete it by September to reduce the spread of the disease and end the epidemic soon.

It is estimated that the number of children who need to be vaccinated in the campaign is about 125,000. The vaccination progress of children aged 1 to 5 years old needs to continue to be accelerated and completed in September, while the whole city starts mass vaccination for children aged 6 to 10 years old from the 3rd week of September 2024.

The Department of Health urges all people to urgently take their children who have not been fully vaccinated to get measles vaccine at health stations, hospitals, and schools as notified by local health authorities.

In addition, the Department also requested the Department of Education and Training and the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs to actively review and make a list of children aged 1-10 who have not received enough vaccinations, in coordination with medical centers and health stations to organize vaccination for children as soon as possible.

At the same time, the People's Committee of Thu Duc City and districts are requested to actively review and make a list of children aged 1-10 who have not received all their vaccinations and are living in the area and encourage their families to vaccinate their children; prioritize screening in areas with population fluctuations, boarding houses, places that shelter homeless children, etc. to avoid missing any children in the area.

Health experts say measles is considered a global threat because the measles virus of the Paramyxoviridae family spreads rapidly through the respiratory tract from sick people to healthy people in the community or even across borders.

Measles is dangerous because it not only causes acute symptoms but also puts patients at risk of nervous system infections, motor system disorders, damage to multiple organs in the body, and can leave many serious, long-lasting or even lifelong complications for patients such as encephalitis, meningitis, otitis media, pneumonia, diarrhea, corneal ulcers, blindness, etc.

In addition, measles is especially dangerous because it has the ability to erase immune memory, destroying an average of about 40 types of antibodies that can fight pathogens.

In children, a 2019 study by geneticist Stephen Elledge at Harvard University showed that measles eliminates between 11% and 73% of protective antibodies in children.

That is, when infected with measles, the patient's immune system will be destroyed and reset to its original immature, incomplete state like that of a newborn child.

To reduce the risk and prevent a resurgence of measles, WHO emphasizes that vaccination is the only way to protect children and adults from this potentially dangerous disease. Countries around the world are required to achieve and maintain a coverage rate of over 95% with 2 doses of measles vaccine.

Children and adults need to proactively get vaccinated against measles fully and on schedule to help the body produce specific antibodies against the measles virus, helping to prevent the risk of measles and severe complications, with outstanding effectiveness of up to 98%.

In addition, each person needs to proactively clean their eyes, nose, and throat with antiseptic solution every day. Limit gathering in crowded places, avoid close contact with people showing signs of measles or suspected of having the disease, and do not share personal items with people with the disease. Keep your living space clean and supplement foods to help strengthen the immune system.

If you experience symptoms of measles (fever, runny nose, dry cough, red eyes, sensitivity to light, rash all over the body), you should quickly go to the nearest medical center or facility for timely examination and treatment.