The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) says the Americas including the Caribbean, is the first in the world to have eliminated measles, a viral disease that can cause severe health problems, including pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and even death.
“This achievement culminates a 22-year effort involving mass vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella throughout the Americas,” said PAHO, adding that the declaration of measles ’elimination was made by the International Expert Committee for Documenting and Verifying Measles, Rubella, and Congenital Rubella Syndrome Elimination in the Americas.
PAHO said the announcement came during its 55th Directing Council, which is currently underway and is being attended by ministers of health from throughout the Americas.
Measles is the fifth vaccine-preventable disease to be eliminated from the Americas, after the regional eradication of smallpox in 1971, poliomyelitis in 1994, and rubella and congenital rubella syndrome in 2015.
This is a historic day for our region and indeed the world,” said PAHO Director Dr Carissa Etienne, adding “it is proof of the remarkable success that can be achieved when countries work together in solidarity towards a common goal.
“It is the result of a commitment made more than two decades ago, in 1994, when the countries of the Americas pledged to end measles circulation by the turn of the 21st century,” she added.
In the Americas, PAHO said 101,800 deaths were attributable to measles between 1971 and 1979. A cost-effectiveness study on measles elimination in Latin America and the Caribbean has estimated that with vaccination, 3.2 million measles cases will have been prevented in the region and 16,000 deaths between 2000 and 2020, PAHO said.
