A man holds a child receiving oxygen through a nebuliser mask while undergoing treatment for measles at DNCC hospital in the capital on Monday.
— FE Photo
Measles and measles-like symptoms claimed 17 more children's lives in the 24 hours until 8:00am on Monday, the highest daily toll since mid-March when health authorities began keeping records.
The total death toll has risen to 311, including 52 confirmed cases, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
More than 1,450 new infections were recorded in the past 24 hours, taking the total suspected cases to 41,793 and confirmed cases to 5,467 since mid-March, the DGHS bulletin said.
A total of 28,842 patients have been admitted to hospitals, of whom 25,151 have returned home after recovery.
Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that affects individuals of all ages and remains one of the leading causes of death among young children globally. While it is usually mild or moderately severe, it can lead to complications such as pneumonia, diarrhoea, secondary ear infections, encephalitis, blindness and death.
Experts told The Financial Express that the growing number of infections is driving the rising death toll.
They blamed both the current and previous governments for failing to take timely measures to protect children.
"If the government declares an emergency as the outbreak takes an epidemic form, it could help in emergency management, including urgent vaccine procurement, testing kits and support from global
development partners," said Dr Be-Nazir Ahmed, former director of Disease Control at the DGHS.
"Until vulnerable children under five are fully vaccinated, the risk of casualties will not fall and the situation may not improve. We have yet to reach that coverage level," he added.
He believes the outbreak may have reached its peak, noting that it could take two to three weeks to see the impact of the ongoing vaccination drive.
Experts also called for urgent consultations with specialists to guide policy decisions.
In response to the rapidly spreading outbreak, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has launched an emergency measles-rubella vaccination campaign targeting children aged six months to five years, regardless of prior vaccination status.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners are supporting the campaign, which aims to reach 18 million children, including more than 180,000 in Cox's Bazar.
More than 16 million children have already been vaccinated.
Bangladesh had made significant progress towards measles elimination before the current outbreak.
However, a nationwide vaccine stockout in 2024-25 increased the number of susceptible children and contributed to the surge in infections, the WHO said.
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