Ho Chi Minh City: Measles vaccination rate reaches safe level, but cases decrease slowly

Children in Ho Chi Minh City receive vaccinations - Photo: XUAN MAI

On the evening of October 1, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health updated the latest situation on the measles vaccination campaign after one month of implementation and the number of cases in the most recent week (from September 23 to 29) in the city.

Measles epidemic is under control, unlikely to break out into a large epidemic

Accordingly, after 1 month of implementing the measles vaccination campaign, as of September 30, the total number of injections achieved was 204,423 (including 42,049 injections for children 1-5 years old, 140,886 injections for children 6-10 years old and 21,488 injections for other subjects), with 1,284 injection points across localities in the area.

In particular, the coverage rate for children aged 1-5 years old with 2 doses of measles vaccine has theoretically reached 95.09% (including children who had received 2 doses of measles vaccine before the campaign). Thus, the city has basically completed the goal of the measles vaccination campaign.

According to the results of the review of the National Immunization System as of September 28, the coverage rate of 2 measles vaccine doses for children aged 1-5 years old has reached 95.09% (including children who had received 2 measles doses before the campaign).

"This result will help control the measles epidemic in the city, making it unlikely to become a large-scale epidemic," the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health assessed.

According to the department, achieving the above results is the result of the efforts of many departments, branches and organizations. The work of screening children, communicating and organizing safe injection sites has been seriously and continuously implemented over the past month.

In addition, this measles vaccination campaign has also mobilized the participation of the private vaccination system, helping to increase the number of vaccination points, creating more convenience for parents to easily take their children to get vaccinated, even on holidays and days off.

Measles cases will decrease slowly

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health added that according to the survey results, out of 504 children, 135 children were eligible for vaccination in this campaign (because they had not received 2 doses before August 31). However, currently, only 54% of children were vaccinated between August 31 and September 30.

This result reflects the reality that although the city has achieved measles vaccination coverage, due to population mobility, there are still children in the community who have not received follow-up vaccinations. Therefore, the actual vaccination coverage rate has not reached the 95% protection threshold.

"This explains why there may not be a large measles outbreak in the city, but the number of cases will decrease slowly and clusters of cases may appear in areas with low vaccination rates," the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health assessed.

In fact, in week 39 (from September 23 to 29), the city recorded 111 measles cases, an increase of 25.8% compared to the average of the previous 4 weeks. The total number of cases accumulated from the beginning of the year to week 39 is 846 cases.

In addition, the number of cases between 9 and 12 months of age has not decreased in recent weeks and most of these children have not been vaccinated, although this is the age group required to receive the first dose of measles vaccine.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tp-hcm-ti-le-tiem-vac-xin-soi-dat-muc-an-toan-nhung-ca-mac-giam-cham-20241001190444859.htm