Sevo Prilevic / AFP
Measles cases have increased 30-fold in Europe.
Health – increased dizziness. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Tuesday, January 23, that the number of measles cases in Europe has exploded in 2023 compared to the previous year. Between January and October 2023, more than 30,000 cases were reported in 40 of the region’s 53 states. “Compared to the 941 cases reported during the year 2022, this represents a multiplication of more than 30”notes the organization in its press release.
While these findings may be alarming, France is far from being the most affected country: according to WHO figures, there were 106 cases in France during the study period. A figure that still increases compared to 2022, where there was viral circulation “almost non-existent”, With only 15 cases, according to Public Health France.
But for Branca Horvet, director of research at INSERM, which specializes in respiratory infections – including measles – it can happen. “There will be increases in the coming weeks and months”. “It’s hard to predictshe adds. But given the rise in cases in other European countries, it wouldn’t be surprising if the increase came in France. »
For comparison, Kazakhstan and Russia are the most affected countries with more than 12,000 cases for the former and 6,000 for the latter. With 157 cases, the United Kingdom is the country in Western Europe where the resurgence of a disease thought to have been eradicated in 2021 is most evident.
A contagious and potentially dangerous disease
Measles, which manifests itself as a rash first accompanied by rhinitis, conjunctivitis, cough, very high fever and extreme fatigue, can affect all age groups, although it is more common in children, according to the WHO.
“Measles virus is highly contagious. A person can infect 15 to 20 other people if they are in the same room”, the researcher recalls. It can cause life-threatening complications like pneumonia.
Also “Instead of Worrying”Branka Horvat wants to encourage parents “Vaccinate their children”. The resurgence of measles in Europe can in fact be attributed to the decline in vaccination coverage during the Covid years. “The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the functioning of the immune system during this period, leading to an accumulation of unvaccinated or inadequately vaccinated children”WHO explains.
Target 95%
To contain the disease and hope to eradicate it, we must maintain a vaccination rate of 95%. In France, vaccination is mandatory for infants born after 2018. The first dose is given at 12 months and the second between 16 and 18 months. But according to Sante Public France the 95% objective has not been achieved: “Under-vaccinated populations persist, particularly among adolescents and young adults, or even in certain populations remote from the health system. »
According to the researcher, “It is a very effective vaccine, which has no negative consequences and which is well tolerated”. “Our coverage is 95% in some places”But when this figure is not reached, it is not reached, she adds “Not enough to prevent the risk of measles episodes”.
In Europe in 2022, only 92% of European children had received a second dose of the vaccine. The WHO, through its regional director Hans Kluge, called for this “Vaccination Activities” Who should “Urgent measures are being taken to stop transmission and prevent spread”.
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