Navi Mumbai: Amid the increasing number of children infected with measles in Mumbai, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has started a special survey by visiting each household to find out any suspected cases of measles patients.
The survey will be completed by November 30 and during that period, health workers will visit homes and check children of up to 5-years-old whether they have been vaccinated or not.
Special Survey till Nov 30
“Considering the present situation in other places, NMMC is on alert mode and a special survey has been undertaken till November 30 by the Civil Health Centre to find suspected measles patients in the municipal jurisdiction,” said a senior civic official.
Meanwhile, the civic chief Rajesh Narvekar has appealed to citizens to share the proper information about children upto 5 years with health workers. He also asked to take vaccination at the earliest and it is free of cost and available at all health centers.
A senior official from the civic health department informed that NMMC has administered the first dose of the Measles-Rubella vaccine to 14215 children aged 9 months to 12 months from April 2022 to October 2022. Similarly, 13172 children in the age group of 16 to 24 months have been vaccinated with the second dose.
175 additional vaccination sessions
Meanwhile, the civic body will hold 175 additional vaccination sessions to vaccinate the beneficiaries who missed vaccination in the age group of 0 to 5 years in the NMMC area.
Similarly, a special isolation ward of 8 beds has been set up on the ground floor of Municipal Corporation's Masaheb Meenatai Thackeray Hospital, Nerul for children with measles. In this regard, special training pediatricians in the municipal sector, special coordinator of the World Health Organization Dr. Arun Katkar held a training.
“The vaccine is available free of cost in all government hospitals. Measles can be prevented if vaccinated as per the vaccination schedule. Children who have not been vaccinated against Measles/Rubella must be vaccinated,” said the official.
According to the civic health department, from January to October, a total of 160 suspected cases of measles were registered. However, the blood test reports found only six of them positive. All the suspected and positive cases were already vaccinated on time and their health condition was normal.
About Measles
Measles is an infectious disease caused by a virus and symptoms begin to appear 7 to 10 days after the virus enters the body. Symptoms initially include fever and cough, cold, red eyes, one, two or all three symptoms. A rash appears on the body 2 to 4 days after the initial symptoms appear. The rash starts behind the ear and then spreads to the face, chest, stomach, and back. Due to the reduction of vitamin A in the body of a measles patient, the patient may develop eye diseases and diseases such as diarrhea, pneumonia, and encephalitis. “If a patient with measles is given a dose of vitamin A for two consecutive days, the chances of developing the disease are reduced,” said the official.
“Measles virus is spread through the air through coughs or sneezes of patients and enters the body through the respiratory system of the person in contact. In case of symptoms of this disease, they should not panic and visit the nearest municipal hospital or civil primary health centre and to prevent measles outbreak,” appealed the official.
