Bangladesh is witnessing a measles outbreak which has claimed the lives of 118 people, mostly children. According to the country's Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the deaths have been reported since March 15, including five deaths in the 24-hour period ending Monday morning.

DGHS has also stated that there are 2006 suspected measles patients, primarily children, who are currently receiving care at hospitals across the country.

Benazir Ahmed, a health expert and former director of disease control at the DGHS, said that the previous Muhammad Yunus-led interim government's sudden cancellation of the sectoral programme, which provided funds for vaccination, sparked a measles vaccine crisis, resulting in the deaths of many children.

Bangladesh's leading newspaper, Daily Star, quoted Ahmed as saying, "When we are supposed to celebrate something positive on World Health Day, we have to fight an outbreak, which is very unfortunate.

We are supposed to eliminate measles-rubella by 2026, but we are struggling with the growing number of measles patients at hospitals."Measles is a contagious illness that is caused by a virus. It causes rash and flu-like symptoms, however, it is not just a rash.

The illness can cause severe illness and lead to life-threatening complications like brain inflammation and pneumonia. Measles can be prevented with a vaccine, the MMR vaccine. This vaccine is usually a part of routine immunisation programs across the world.

Source:Ndtv