For hundreds of years, measles has been one of the most contagious and lethal viruses known to humans.
It poses a significant risk to individuals, especially children under five years of age who lack vaccination, as their immune systems and organ systems are still developing, reports Saturday Tribune.
Measles disease, caused by the measles virus, is highly infectious. Despite the availability of a safe and affordable vaccination, measles kills more children than any other vaccine-preventable disease in Nigeria each year.
Amid an increase in measles cases nationwide, the US CDC has issued a warning on a growing measles threat in Nigeria.
Joseph Forbi, an epidemiologist with the CDC’s Global Immunisation Division in Nigeria, recently in Abuja, said measles remains a significant cause of illness and death among children globally, and Nigeria continues to record some of the highest case numbers worldwide.
According to Forbi, more than 20,000 suspected measles cases were recorded in Nigeria in 2024, with about 10,000 confirmed, mostly in children who were either not vaccinated or incompletely vaccinated.
“Nigeria is currently among the top 10 countries reporting the highest number of measles cases globally. Only 60 percent of children in Nigeria receive their first dose of the measles vaccine on schedule.
Around three million children remain unvaccinated,” he said.
One person afflicted with measles can spread the virus to up to eighteen unprotected others, making it “extremely infectious”. The virus is easily spread through respiratory droplets or contact with contaminated surfaces, remaining viable for up to two hours.
“The virus spreads through respiratory droplets or direct contact with contaminated surfaces. It can remain active in the air or on surfaces for up to two hours. Initial symptoms include high fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes,” he explained.
Symptoms of measles include fever, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes. In severe cases, the disease can cause long-term disability or death, particularly in children.
In response, Professor Oladele Olatunya, a paediatric consultant at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital in Ado Ekiti, stated that a number of factors, including a decline in measles vaccination coverage in Nigeria, are to blame for the resurgence of measles, diphtheria, and other vaccine-preventable diseases in the country.
For example, there are many crisis zones in the nation right now, and medical personnel may not be able to reach some of them to vaccinate people. As a result, the high percentage of children who are either completely unvaccinated or only partially vaccinated—so-called ‘zero-dose children’ — will rise,” he explained.
Olatunya emphasised the need to ensure that eligible children are vaccinated, that insecurity is contained in the country, and that health workers are motivated to render services effectively and maintain the vaccine cold chain adequately to guarantee the potency of the vaccine.
“The conflict zones need special attention; an immunisation corridor can be created where health workers will be given security protection to be able to go to hard-to-reach areas to vaccinate all children.
“If the cold chain is broken, the potency of the vaccine cannot be guaranteed. Even if you give the vaccine and you give something that is not potent, you don’t expect any outcome. The children may not be immunised, even though they are vaccinated.”
To be sure they are immunised, children should get the measles vaccine twice. In nations where measles is prevalent, the first dosage is often administered at nine months of age; in other nations, it is given between 12 and 15 months. Later in childhood, often between 15 and 18 months, a second dosage should be administered.
According to Professor Olatunya, the focus is on children having booster doses of the measles vaccine in order to ensure that they build immunity to the disease.
Immunity from the original vaccine can fade over time, and a booster shot can help the immune system “boost” the protection it provides.
Professor Olatunya assured that booster doses of the measles vaccine are safe, adding, “The booster doses will reduce the rate of occurrence of measles infection in society.”
He claims that booster doses are comparable to supporting doses, adding, “When you take normal doses, you also take booster doses, which are recommended by PAN and by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency. The levels of protection among children who have booster doses are much higher than those who do not have booster doses.”
He added that making sure children have the vaccination can also help avoid measles-related problems like blindness, deafness, pneumonia, and encephalitis, which is a brain infection.
Measles also weakens the immune system, making many children more vulnerable to other infectious diseases, such as pneumonia and diarrhoea, for months after they survive the measles infection.
Professor Olatunya cautions against delaying measles vaccination for whatever reason, warning that it is also dangerous for children.
In a study that underlined how crucial it is to schedule children’s vaccinations, researchers found that postponing some standard vaccinations past the first 15 months of life may increase the risk of seizures brought on by fever. Paediatrics released the study online.
He urged nutritious meals for children. “If you vaccinate a child that is malnourished or undernourished, the chances that the child will have immunity against that disease are very slim compared to a child that is well-nourished,” he explained.
