Public Health Ontario has declared the measles outbreak in Ontario is now over.
Over 2,000 cases were reported in Ontario since the outbreak was declared in Oct. 18, of last year. Almost three-quarters of the reported cases in Ontario have been infants, children and adolescents. More than 96 per cent of them were unvaccinated.
“Measles is a completely preventable disease,” says Dr. Barton, Division Chief of Infectious Diseases at the Children’s Hospital, LHSC, who attributes the “excellent” Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccine.
“It’s not a new vaccine; it has been around for a long time. We know it’s safe, available, and effective.”
Dr. Barton says, “If vaccine coverage falls, the first way to really recognize that is through measles.” This is due to measles requiring such a high coverage rate because of how contagious it is.
Due to measles being so contagious, combined with symptoms being very similar to the common cold, a large volume of patients quickly overwhelmed emergency rooms across Southwestern Ontario.
In Ontario, there has been one reported case of infant death from measles. Newborns who demonstrate evidence of measles within the first 10 days of life are considered to have Congenital Measles (cM). In a report written by Dr. Barton, it says
“During the current outbreak in Ontario, newborns with suspected or confirmed cM who have required admission to a neonatal intensive care unit have required airborne precautions and prolonged isolation until serial PCR testing has returned negative. The emotional toll of communication and care on affected families and staff cannot be underestimated.”
If an outbreak or case appears at the Neonatal (newborns up to 28 days) Intensive Care Unit, extra precautions must be made as to not infect other patients. Dr. Barton highlighted the traumatic experience for both the baby and parents as they are isolated from each other if cM is suspected.
Despite the outbreak being declared over, Dr Barton says we aren’t in a place for a “sigh of relief,” and that there is “need for education to emphasis the important of vaccines.”
Measles outbreak highlights importance of vaccines
