Hue: The number of measles cases with severe complications has increased dramatically

Similar to many provinces and cities across the country, the measles situation in Hue city this year is quite complicated, the number of measles cases and cases with severe complications has increased dramatically compared to previous years.

The local health sector is speeding up the completion of the measles vaccination campaign before March 31. Treatment facilities are focusing on triaging and isolating measles cases and suspected measles cases.

Many measles cases are severe

From November 2024 to present, the number of children hospitalized and transferred to Hue Central Hospital due to measles and suspected measles has begun to increase rapidly. To date, the unit has recorded more than 700 cases (inside and outside Hue city) including children under the age of vaccination to children who have been vaccinated.

The Department of Gastroenterology, Urology, and Tropical Diseases of the Pediatric Center, Hue Central Hospital, has now erected barriers to block the entrance to the isolation area to serve the separate treatment of measles and suspected measles rash fever cases. With 45 pediatric patients currently being admitted, additional beds must be added inside and outside the ward to serve the treatment.

According to Master, Doctor Tran Thi Hanh Chan, Head of the Department of Gastroenterology and Urology, the number of patients is increasing rapidly, so the department is often overloaded. When coming to the clinic with signs of suspected measles (fever, cough, runny nose, fatigue...), the patient will be isolated and their vaccination history will be investigated. Children who have not been fully vaccinated against measles will be prescribed a vaccination within 72 hours as a precaution.

Dr. Tran Thi Hanh Chan said that there is currently no specific treatment for measles, patients are treated based on symptoms and prevention of disease progression. In particular, patients are supplemented with high doses of vitamin A, clean hygiene, and adequate nutrition to overcome the early stages of measles. Measles often causes serious complications such as pneumonia, meningitis or sepsis in immunocompromised children, but currently there are cases of severe complications not based on any underlying disease or chronic disease.

Many children with measles have severe complications requiring ventilators and blood filtration and are transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care and Emergency Department, Pediatric Center. Here, a room with 6 beds and many machines always operates at full capacity, sometimes even requiring additional beds.

The most serious case currently in the department is an 11-month-old patient from Quang Binh province who has undergone dialysis. The child with measles has complications of severe pneumonia, respiratory failure and septic shock. Doctors are actively treating the child with antibiotics, vasopressors and putting the child on a ventilator. The child's condition is progressing well and he is likely to be weaned off the ventilator in the next few days.

Specialist II Doctor Nguyen Dac Luong, Head of the Pediatric Intensive Care and Emergency Department, said that this year there have been many severe measles cases; many of which have complications such as pneumonia, causing progressive respiratory failure. Many cases were received from the central provinces such as Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and were saved. A typical case is a child (residing in Ha Tinh province) who was transferred in a state of paralysis of both lower limbs and autonomic nervous system disorder. The child contracted measles leading to complications of encephalomyelitis. After a period of treatment, the child was discharged from the hospital in stable health condition.

Accelerating completion of vaccination campaign

According to the Hue City Department of Health, from the beginning of the year to March 24, 2025, the locality recorded 628 cases of rash fever suspected of measles and 57 confirmed measles cases. The sector sent 94 test samples to the Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang, of which 28 samples tested positive for the measles virus. The rate of confirmed measles cases and rash fever suspected of measles was nearly 4.8 cases/100,000 people and over 52 cases/100,000 people, respectively. Meanwhile, in the whole year of 2024, the locality recorded only 27 cases of rash fever suspected of measles and 24 confirmed measles cases.

Currently, 9/9 districts, towns and cities of Hue city have recorded measles cases. As the locality with the most complicated developments, Thuan Hoa district recorded nearly 250 cases of rash fever, 32 confirmed measles cases (most of whom have not been vaccinated). The risk of measles infection throughout the city is expected to continue to increase.

In that situation, on March 21, the People's Committee of Hue City issued a Plan to implement a measles vaccination campaign. The campaign began on March 25, with a peak on March 26-27.

Hue City currently has more than 5,306 children aged 6-9 months, nearly 30,000 children aged 1-10 years. The Ministry of Health has allocated to the locality 5,400 doses of measles vaccine to vaccinate children aged 6 to under 9 months; nearly 24,000 doses of measles-rubella vaccine (MR vaccine) to vaccinate children aged 1-10 years.

Measles vaccination campaign underway. (Photo: Thuy Dung/VNA)

The health sector has coordinated with the local education and training sector in recent days to urgently investigate the number of children who have not been vaccinated or have not received two doses of measles-containing vaccines, in order to quickly deploy the campaign; the priority subjects are preschool children and school students; striving to complete the campaign no later than March 31.

During the working program of the Ministry of Health's inspection delegation in Hue city on the afternoon of March 25, Dr. Nguyen Thanh Dong, Deputy Director of Nha Trang Pasteur Institute, Head of the working delegation, highly appreciated the attention of the city's leaders as well as the planning work of the local health sector; not to let vaccine shortages occur in the area.

Dr. Nguyen Thanh Dong noted that the city needs to strengthen community surveillance, pay attention to monitoring the medical history of children aged 6-9 months in statistical reports to propose appropriate solutions; analyze risks by area, have intervention measures, and allocate resources reasonably.

The city's Department of Health needs to train grassroots medical staff in data analysis and evaluation. Vaccination must ensure safety and avoid cross-infection./.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/hue-so-ca-mac-soi-gap-bien-chung-nang-tang-cao-dot-bien-post1023244.vnp