Abstract
IntroductionMeasles is a highly contagious viral infection with high mortality in poorly vaccinated regions. We sought to establish the trend in mortality and the factors that favoured the recent measles outbreak that occurred in Benakuma, in the North west region of Cameroon from the 21/06/2015 to 26/09/2015.MethodsWe carried out a retrospective register analysis of 223 measles cases. Time trends were established using the Mann-Kendall test while survival was assessed using the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and log rank test for comparisons.ResultsWe had a case fatality of 8.5% and the mortality decreased significantly (p = 0.01) after the following public health interventions were instituted: community sensitisation and education; outbreak response immunisation and the use of a clinician in controlling the outbreak. Furthermore, the number of cases (p < 0.01) and the duration from onset of illness to consultation at a health facility (p < 0.01) decreased significantly after the institution of the aforementioned interventions. Also, survival during the outbreak was better in females (p = 0.02) and in those treated in health facilities (p < 0.01).ConclusionThe poor vaccination status in Benakuma coupled with negative cultural beliefs; poor socioeconomic and environmental factors and inadequate public health policies predisposed the region to a measles outbreak and favoured the spread of the virus. Public health policies should be revisited, modified and intensified to scale up vaccination coverage in measles endemic zones in Cameroon to help eliminate the disease and facilitate the overall attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Highlights
Measles is a highly contagious viral infection with high mortality in poorly vaccinated regions
We assessed the impact of immunisation and the public health interventions on the trend in mortality during the measles outbreak which occurred in the Benakuma Health District (BHD) in North West, Cameroon
Measles outbreaks in regions with poor vaccination coverage could be associated with a high mortality especially when the spread is favoured by negative cultural, socioeconomic and environmental factors
Summary
Measles is a highly contagious viral infection with high mortality in poorly vaccinated regions. Despite the 90% nationwide vaccination coverage that led to a decrease in annual incidence from 41 cases per 100,000 children in 2001-2004 to 2 cases per 100,000 children from 2005-2008 [3, 4]; there are still several regions which have very low vaccination coverage like Misaje (found in the Northwest region of Cameroon) with 78% measles vaccine coverage and Benakuma where vaccination coverage ranges from 30.8% to 94% (Figure 1) [3, 5] These regions which are highly unvaccinated remain significant pitfalls to measles elimination as over 95% of a population should be immunised in order to achieve this objective [6]. We assessed the impact of immunisation and the public health interventions on the trend in mortality during the measles outbreak which occurred in the Benakuma Health District (BHD) in North West, Cameroon
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
