International
Measles resurfaces in the US.
(Free Press Photo: AFP)
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported Thursday that on March 11 he received a US report on the current measles outbreak in that country, which was notified in compliance with the International Health Regulations (RSI), of which it is part, despite its withdrawal of the global health entity.
The outbreak was notified because it is an unusual event with a potentially significant impact on public health.
The number of cases and deaths registered since 2025 began has exceeded the figures of previous years.
RSI is a legally binding treaty adopted by 196 countries, including the United States, to prevent and respond to international sanitary threats. Although it is administered by WHO, belonging to this regulation does not depend exclusively on the country being a member of it.
Between January 1 and last March 20, 17 US states reported a total of 378 measles cases, including two deaths, which were the first related to this disease in a decade.
Most cases have been registered in unnoticed children or with an unknown state of vaccination, and the general hospitalization rate is 17 %, the WHO said.
According to the organization, there have been three different outbreaks that concentrate 90 % of cases, although it is considered that the most serious is the one that occurred in Texas, which has reported 309 cases (80 % of the total).
Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that is transmitted through air and can cause serious complications and even death.
The United States was declared measles free in 2000, and in 2016 the American continent was the first region considered free of the endemic transmission of the virus, although there has always been the risk of its reintroduction or the entry of imported cases.