Mumbai: 4-yr-old child dies of measles

Mumbai: After a gap of 10 days, another suspected death from measles was reported in Mumbai on Friday. A four-year-old girl from Kurla died at a civic hospital on Dec 9. The total number of confirmed deaths across the state has now risen to 17, with 12 in Mumbai alone (while eight were confirmed cases, four are still suspected). 

A doctor said the child who died on Nov 9 had developed fever on Dec 1. Three days later, she developed a rash on her face; it later spread all over the body. She was admitted to a BMC hospital and was shifted to the ICU but her condition deteriorated. Despite resuscitative measures, she could not be revived and succumbed at 7.20am on Friday.

The cause of her death was refractory metabolic acidosis with acute gastroenteritis with measles and bronchopneumonia. She was also an acute case of malnutrition.

Meanwhile, 37% of beds meant for measles patients are occupied across the city. As per data, there are 447 confirmed measles cases and 4,839 suspected cases in Mumbai. 

“Out of the total 2,24,130 children in the age group of nine month to five years in 61 health posts, 26,721(11.9%) were given an additional dose of vaccine against measles.

Moreover, out of the total 4,745 children in the age group of six to nine months in 20 health posts, where the cases among infants younger than nine month are more than 10% of total lab confirmed cases, 953 (20.08%) were given the zero dose,” said a senior health official.