As Measles Cases Surge, Mexico Issues a US Travel Alert

Like the USA The struggles to contain the worst measles outbreak for years are taken over in Mexico. In April 25th ReportThe Mexican Ministry of Health reported that there were 583 cases in the country this year, with 560 being recorded in the border state of Chihuahua. On April 27, the Chihuahua Health Secretariat brought the number of confirmed cases of the state even higher to 713. In comparison, the Pan American Health Organization reported Only 7 confirmed cases all over Mexico in 2024.

The outbreak in Chihuahua is partly due to his proximity to Texas, which he borders in the north. A big outbreak was Since the end of January in the US state of US stateand cases in Mexico were connected to those north of the border. The United States have recorded 884 Confirmed cases of measles this year, compared to 285 in 2024 and three deaths from the disease. Of this year’s cases in the USA, 646 were in Texas.

To prevent the measles virus from spreading all over Mexico, his Ministry of Health A has published A Travel warning for the United States and Canada, in which cases have also increased. The ministry advises travelers to ensure that they are up to date with their vaccinations, practice social distancing, wear a mask and wash their hands frequently.

The falling vaccination levels have also contributed to increasing the cases of Mexico. As you have in the USA. In 98 percent of the US cases this year, the patient – whether grown up or a child – had no history of vaccination against measles. At the beginning of April it was reported that a 31-year-old man who did not vaccinate against measles had died of the disease in Chihuahua.

Since measles are very contagious, very high vaccination rates against IT – 95 percent – are required in the communities to prevent the virus from spreading. However, the vaccination rates in Mexico have stalled. Children are said to receive two doses of the measles vaccine, the first usually between 12 and 15 months and the second in the next few years. After the WHO, in 2023 Only 76 percent A measles vaccine had received a measles vaccine from children under the age of 2 in Mexico.

If the rates do not improve, this can become endemic again in North America. After analysis Stanford University’s epidemiologists could steadily present measles at current vaccination rates at the state level in the United States in the next two decades. This would lead to 2,500 people in the next 25 years.

In response to the urgent need to reverse the decreasing vaccination in Mexico, the Ministry of Health launched a national vaccination week, the country’s first nationwide immunization campaign since the Covid 19 pandemic. From April 26 to May 3, the plan is to increase the vaccine levels in the group that are most susceptible to measles: children aged 1 to 9 years. The Ministry hopes to vaccinate 1.8 million children to bring them up to date with their shots by offering vaccines free of charge in hospitals, clinics, schools and health centers.

Measles are not the only disease that aims at Mexico: Children over 4 years are also offered DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus), and a pneumococcal booster is offered at the age of 12 months. Young people, adults over 60 and pregnant women are also invited to receive specific vaccines that they may need.

Measles is a Virus diseaseAnd it is considered one of the most contagious in the world. It mostly spreads in children. It is transferred through contact with infected nose or pharyngeal secretion and through the air and initially influences the airways. Symptoms include a high fever, cough, plenty of existing nasal discharges and a rash that spreads all over the body. Complications can be blindness, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), diarrhea, dehydration, ears and pneumonia. In severe cases it can be fatal.

This story originally appeared on WIRED in Spanish and was translated from Spanish.