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The number of confirmed measles cases in the Engela District in northern Namibia has quadrupled...

The number of confirmed measles cases in the Engela District in northern Namibia has quadrupled to 12, up from the three reported early last week.

This was confirmed at a meeting of the National Health Emergency Management Committee (NHEMC) yesterday, where it was said that the number of suspected measles cases has also doubled from 21 last week to 42 this week.

The majority of those suspected or confirmed to have the measles are Angolan nationals. The NHEMC last week said that a mass outbreak of the disease across the border in Angola had started to make its way into Namibia.

Measles is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus. Symptoms include a sudden onset of fever, coughing, runny nose, red eyes, and a generalised fine rash that spreads down the body. It is spread by coughing and sneezing, and contact with fluids from an infected person's nose and mouth.

The infection usually affects children under the age of five. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says measles is a leading cause of death among young children even though a safe and cost-effective vaccine is available to prevent the disease.

Of the 12 cases confirmed, four are adults aged 24, 31, 33 and 38; and three are children - two aged 10 and one aged 17. The remaining five are children younger than five, of which two are under the age of one.

The Ministry's vaccination campaigns usually target children between the ages of nine months and one year, with supplementary vaccinations for those under the age of five.

There is a high risk of complications for older people who have not been vaccinated or did not contract measles in childhood. Possible complications include pneumonia, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and conjunctivitis (commonly called 'pink eye') or even blindness.

In an analysis of the measles immunisation data from the Engela District, Dr Lawson Ahadzie of the World Health Organisation has proposed that health facilities with immunisation coverage of lower than 90 per cent should be targeted for a selective mass immunisation campaign.

"The suggested target population will be children nine months to five years old," he writes.