At least 21 children in Bangladesh are confirmed to have succumbed to measles infections so far this year, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), as the country grapples with a deadly outbreak of the disease, which has further led to 128 fatalities due to symptoms associated with measles.
In the past 24 hours, the DGHS recorded one confirmed death and 10 suspected measles-related deaths, admitting over 1,236 patients with measles-like symptoms across the country, while 224 cases were laboratory-confirmed as measles.
As per DGHS data, between the period of March 15 and April 7, a total of 1,398 measles cases have been confirmed through laboratory testing, reports Business Standard BD.
According to the latest health bulletin, a total of 9,883 suspected measles cases have been identified nationwide, of which 6,883 patients have already been discharged after receiving treatment.
The outbreak has been attributed to a massive dip in vaccinations and institutional lapse in the past one and a half years of the former interim government, which shifted its focus away from the medical sector amid the then-prevalent period of political chaos.
