If you have immunity, you are not afraid of disease.
Dr. Truong Huu Khanh - Vice President of the Ho Chi Minh City Infectious Diseases Association commented: Ho Chi Minh City declaring a measles epidemic will facilitate epidemic prevention work, because it will mobilize all resources to participate in measles prevention. Despite the epidemic announcement, tourists or business people in Ho Chi Minh City should not be too panicked or worried if they have been fully vaccinated against measles before.
"People who are immune do not have to fear measles," emphasized Dr. Truong Huu Khanh.
If a person with COVID-19 only infects 2-5 people, then a person with measles can infect 12-18 people around them who are not immune to measles. Measles has a risk of outbreak every 5 years, and now is right in this epidemic cycle.
To prevent the risk of an outbreak, measles vaccination coverage needs to reach 95% to achieve effective community immunity. However, measles vaccination rates in Vietnam in recent years have dropped below the ideal threshold, contributing to the measles outbreak in Ho Chi Minh City.
More dangerously, if not prevented promptly by increasing vaccination and other disease prevention methods, not only in Ho Chi Minh City, but also in neighboring provinces and cities, there is a risk of measles cases appearing and increasing, serious complications, complicated disease developments, and more dangerously, measles can break out nationwide.
Meanwhile, many people think that measles is a mild disease that can heal on its own without causing any danger to the patient. But in reality, measles can lead to serious complications and even death if not properly cared for and treated.
A common complication of measles is acute pneumonia, leading to progressive respiratory failure. In developing countries, pneumonia occurs in up to 80% of children with measles and is the leading cause of death from measles.
In addition, measles can also cause complications such as blindness, acute diarrhea, encephalitis, myelitis, especially in young children, malnourished children, children with HIV/AIDS or congenital immunodeficiency diseases. Measles during pregnancy can also cause miscarriage and premature birth.
Reasons why Ho Chi Minh City announced measles epidemic
Regarding Ho Chi Minh City's announcement of a measles epidemic, according to the Department of Preventive Medicine , in terms of professional criteria, Ho Chi Minh City meets the conditions to announce a measles epidemic according to the provisions of the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases and according to Decision No. 02/2016/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister stipulating the conditions for announcing an epidemic and announcing the end of an infectious disease epidemic. The announcement of an epidemic is decided by the locality itself and also based on the city's response capacity.
Although, from the beginning, Ho Chi Minh City has prepared well for possible scenarios and has had a measles vaccination plan to prepare for this epidemic, the City needs to continue to mobilize more resources and implement stronger and more drastic epidemic prevention and control measures.
According to the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, Ho Chi Minh City will need to implement epidemic prevention measures after the epidemic is announced, such as establishing and perfecting the Steering Committee for Epidemic Prevention and Control at all levels; declaring and reporting the epidemic; organizing emergency care, medical examination and treatment, medical isolation and implementing personal protection measures.
For people, it is necessary to regularly update information on the epidemic situation to proactively take preventive measures and avoid panic; at the same time, proactively vaccinate children fully and on schedule according to the instructions of the health sector and implement preventive measures such as limiting crowded gatherings, regularly washing hands with soap and using masks when going to public places and crowded areas.
Source: https://laodong.vn/y-te/tphcm-cong-bo-dich-soi-de-thuan-loi-phong-chong-dich-1386037.ldo
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