Pattoki, June 9: A measles outbreak in the Kamiana Thatta area of Pattoki in Punjab province has led to the death of three more children, bringing the total fatalities to 10 in the past 20 days.
The crisis has sparked protests among the local populace dismayed by the lack of basic healthcare facilities.
Bahawalpur city and its vicinity are also witnessing a surge in measles cases, with 23 new infections reported in the last 24 hours, media reported.
Currently, 19 children are receiving care at Bahawal Victoria Hospital, and four at Sir Sadiq Abbasi Hospital. In total, 81 children are undergoing treatment across both facilities.
The condition of 10 children remains critical, while eight others have recently recovered and been discharged. Despite the dire situation, some parents have removed their children from medical care prematurely.
In Multan, three children suffering from pneumonia passed away at Nishtar Hospital. One of the children was also battling meningitis. All three, aged between eight months and one and a half years, were being treated in the hospital’s isolation ward, Pakistan Today reported. The deceased included two children from Multan and one from Kabirwala.
Measles is a vaccine-preventable disease, but it continues to take a heavy toll on children, even as the Punjab Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) has warned that the annual measles incidence per million has been increasing for the last three years, leading to the outbreaks across the province since start of 2024.
According to alarming reports, babies aged under nine months, who don’t qualify for the measles vaccine, are falling a prey to the disease in large numbers.
Similarly, the partially-immunised children are also contracting measles in the current outbreak in Punjab, causing serious concern among the public health experts.
