Over 20 measles outbreaks in Mumbai this year; cases rise to 142, suspected deaths 7 | Mumbai News – Times of India

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MUMBAI: The city has recorded over 20 outbreaks of measles since the beginning of the year, yet BMC’s prevention and immunization measures were lacking on many counts, says a report by a central team that was in Mumbai to study the current outbreak.

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As confirmed measles cases mounted to 142, suspected deaths to seven and suspected cases to 1,079, BMC woke up to announce a slew of measures on Tuesday. Ward war rooms created during the coronavirus pandemic were pressed into service for measles monitoring.

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Suggesting that the coronavirus pandemic impacted routine immunisation and could have fuelled the outbreak, BMC revealed that 19,894 children had missed their measles-rubella (MR) vaccine doses and measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) doses, supposed to be taken at nine months and 16 months, respectively, after birth.
Additional municipal commissioner Sanjeev Kumar said a survey in October of children aged between nine months and five years had given the estimation of an unvaccinated pool.
BMC plans 400 new sessions for measles vax over 10 days
The BMC has planned 400 additional vaccination sessions over the coming 10 days to cover children who have not received immunization against measles.
Besides doubling of Covid ward war rooms for measles monitoring, a control room has been started at the Epidemic Control Room in the BMC headquarters to review the situation. An isolation room has been started at Shivaji Nagar Urban Health Centre in Govandi, the epicentre of the current outbreak, for patients with mild symptoms.
A triage system has been created too. The severe patients will be sent to Shatabdi Hospital in Govandi and Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar. Critical patients will be referred to Kasturba Hospital in Chinchpokli, where 68 children are currently undergoing treatment. Five children are on oxygen support.
“We are seeing transmission of measles cases in eight civic wards. They are not spread throughout the ward, but are mostly restricted to the slum corners,” said AMC Kumar, adding that the transmission is higher compared to last year when just nine confirmed cases were detected. “The pandemic has created immunisation gaps and measles could be a fallout of them. But we are strengthening vaccination efforts in a big way,” he said.
The BMC has pressed into service an additional 470 ASHA workers and 200 volunteers to strengthen routine immunisation in 24 divisions in Mumbai. The civic body has also instructed peripheral hospitals, maternity homes and dispensaries to report cases of fever and rash. They have been told to administer vitamin A to such patients.
The central team asked the BMC to strengthen its immunisation efforts in the report that was shared with principal secretary Sanjay Khandare.
Khandare said on Tuesday that a few other districts were also seeing an outbreak, but Mumbai was the worst hit.
“A rise is seen nationally and even internationally. India has seen 755 outbreaks this year, up from 222 last year,” he said. He said that cases were also reported from Bhiwandi and Malegaon. “We will soon be issuing an advisory to all districts,” he said.

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