The Ministry of Health has warned of a measles outbreak when the number of patients has on the sharp rise.

So far this year, Vietnam has seen 90 measles cases, up 30% on-year, including many children who are below nine months, said Associate Prof. Dr. Tran Nhu Duong, deputy head of National Institute of Hygiene And Epidemiology under the Ministry of Health.

Vietnam has seen 90 measles cases, up 30% on-year, including many children who are below nine months

He added that the number of measles patients in the northern region had sharply increased, which may indicate an epidemic.

According to Duong, any child aged between 0 and 15 can face the risk of contracting measles if they are not vaccinated against the disease.

Measles outbreak often takes place every four years. In the 2013-2014 period, the northern region of the country was seriously affected by measles with more than 5,000 patients, including around 100 deaths. Meanwhile, the number of children who is provided with measles vaccination in remote areas has remains low, posing a high risk for the infection.

In 2017, Vietnam recorded only 141 measles cases, mostly in the northern region. Of the figure, children below nine months old accounted for 38.3%, or 54 cases. Up to 55 among the patients had not been provided with the vaccination.