He increase in infections The measles outbreak has the health authorities very aware of the progress of this infectious disease, to the point that those responsible for Public Health in the Region of Murcia have held meetings with each of the primary care teamsmeetings in which the steps that are being taken and the means that exist to act in order to detect cases in time, stopping infections and avoiding outbreaks, were put on the table.
One of the actions that has been initiated by the Murcian Health Department is the ‘repesca’ of all those children in the community who are not vaccinated or that they have an incomplete regimen, having received only one of the two recommended doses, as the head of the Epidemiology Service, María Dolores Chirlaque, explains to La Opinión.
Measles cases have skyrocketed across Europe, but they have also increased worryingly in Spain in these first months of 2024.
The Ministry of Health points out that the increase in the number of measles cases and outbreaks began at the end of 2022, having worsened during 2023 and 2024. In the EU, more than 10,000 cases of this disease in recent monthswith Romania being the most affected country with 80% of the reported cases.
This increase has also reached Spain and of the 14 cases of measles confirmed in 2023 (seven of them imported) it has been transferred to 123 confirmed infections this 2024according to the latest weekly report on Epidemiological Surveillance in Spain of Carlos III Health Institute from Madrid.
Measles is rampant in Europe: why are infections on the rise and how can we prevent it?
According to data published by the National Epidemiological Surveillance Network, 249 suspected cases have been reported in Spain this year and as of June 16, of which 123 are confirmed by the laboratory. While more than 20 sproutsThis means that from 2023 to mid-2024, measles infections in Spain have multiplied by nine.
The most affected community is Castilla-La Mancha, concentrating 33 of the 123 cases this year, followed by Catalonia (19), Madrid (14) and the Valencian Community (14).
Three confirmed cases
In the Region of Murcia have been confirmed in these first six months of the year only three cases of measles, of which two are imported and the third is still considered of unknown origin. The figure is not high, but it must be kept in mind that in 2023 the Region only registered one case of this infectious disease, while in 2022 and 2021 no measles infection was confirmed.
Chirlaque states that «Murcia is not bad in the national context, But it is true that cases have increased so far this year, with more confirmations in most autonomous regions.
What is measles?
Measles is a highly contagious disease with potentially serious complications, for which there is a vaccine. It is an infection caused by a virus for which there is no specific treatment. And although Spain has been eliminating measles since 2016, there has been an upsurge in recent years.
Symptoms
The main symptoms of measles are fever, cough, nasal congestion, eye irritation and a skin rash (even with very characteristic spots inside the mouth). The rash appears days after the fever, begins on the face and then spreads throughout the body.
Complications
Otitis, pneumonia, diarrhea, inflammation of the brain and there may be permanent consequences such as deafness.
How to act?
Home and hospital isolation and notify the case to Public Health on a mandatory and urgent basis. Symptomatic treatment if the patient requires it.
The Murcian Health Service (SMS) immunizes the population against measles with the MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella)which is administered to the 12 months and 4 years. And although coverage with the first dose exceeds 96.4%, it drops to 94.5% with the second dose.
The person responsible for Vaccines at the SMS, Jaime Pérez, points out that “a recapture of unvaccinated children is being carried out through telephone calls to parents and face-to-face meetings with each of the health center teams to increase vaccination coverage rates.” “measles vaccine.” This meticulous work by Public Health professionals is giving results and in this time coverage has been increased by around two points, both in the first and second doses.
72% of those infected had not been vaccinated
The person responsible for Vaccines of the Murcian Health Service, Jaime Pérez, insists on the good results of the measles vaccine, a compound that has a efficiency greater than 95%“Therefore, it is very rare for infections to occur in people who have received both doses,” he says.
The work that Public Health is developing in the Region of Murcia to ‘recover’ unvaccinated children has allowed increase coverage in the two doses around 2%, exceeding in the first and approaching the 95% that is set as the objective in the second.
The protection provided by the MMR vaccine to those who receive it is evident from the fact that 72% of the infections recorded in Spain in 2024 have occurred in unvaccinated people, while another 9.7% of the cases corresponded to those who had only received one of the doses, as shown by the rapid risk assessment published by the Health Alerts and Emergencies Coordination Centre (CCAES) of the Ministry of Health.
The head of the Epidemiology Service of the Region of Murcia, María Dolores Chirlaque, also points to a change in population group trend who usually caught measles, since while a few years ago this disease was more common in children, now More adolescents and adults are being affected.
The same study mentioned points out that of the cases confirmed so far in Spain, 39.3% are under 14 years of age and 60.7% are over 15 years of age.
What is measles and what are its symptoms?
The Ministry of Health also reports that they have observed measles transmission in the healthcare environment, identifying waiting rooms, emergency care areas and hospitalization areas as areas where transmission has occurred.
Agricultural workers
In some autonomous communities, transmission is occurring in unvaccinated population groups, mainly from other countries where there are currently high levels of transmission. Transmission is especially related to agricultural workers who travel between autonomous communities.
«It is foreseeable that the probability of exposure of the population residing in Spain to the measles virus, in our territory or in the context of international travel, will increase at this time due to the increase in cases that is taking place worldwide. Therefore, it is essential to maintain the capacity to detect cases,” insists the Ministry. n