The Vietnamese Ministry of Health pointed to a drop in the number of measles cases in Vietnam as a positive sign for measles control efforts.

On April 23, 42 out of 62 cities and provinces reported less than 10 new suspected measles cases, while many localities saw only one or two patients hospitalised under the suspicion of having the disease. Some reported no cases at all.

In some hospitals in Hanoi, such as National Hospital of Pediatrics, Bach Mai Hospital and Hospital for Infectious and Tropical Diseases, are receiving only five to ten patients per day compared to up to 30 in early April.

 Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien visited a child patient at the National Hospital of Pediatrics on April 16

The Ministry of Health stated that this is a positive signal, showing that efforts to deal with the disease by intensifying prevention through large-scale vaccination in the community are working.

Despite receiving fewer measles patients, many hospitals in Hanoi still face an overcrowding problem and have difficulties treating all the patients. The number of patients with serious complications at hospitals is high, with 253 cases at National Hospital of Pediatrics and 68 at Bach Mai Hospital.

Children being treated at Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi

To date, the disease affected more than 9,900 people, causing 119 deaths, with the majority of the fatalities at National Hospital of Pediatrics in Hanoi. Hanoi has also witnessed the highest number of measles cases and measles-related deaths.

Children under 10 account for 68% of measles patients, and the majority of patients were not vaccinated, while 10% of the patients had got only one of the two required shots.

The Ministry of Health has continued its vaccination efforts nationwide for children aged between nine months and six years. They said they hope to eliminate the disease by 2017.

The Vietnam News Agency reported that Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday demanded that concerned agencies must ensure they have adequate staff, medicine and equipment to eliminate the outbreak as soon as possible.

The PM noted that, while the number of new cases has declined, the number of infected patients is still large. Even more alarming, the measles vaccination rate remains under 50% in 11 provinces.