Tonga measles outbreak tops 400 cases

By NewsDesk @infectiousdiseasenews

In an update on the measles outbreak in Tonga, health officials report as of Monday, 440 cases of confirmed or suspected measles have been identified in Tonga, an additional 46 cases since the last report.

All 46 of the cases from the past week have been from the main island of Tongatapu, meaning 390 (89%) cases in total have occurred on Tongatapu, where the outbreak began.

Ten admissions to hospital have occurred among measles cases in this outbreak, with no deaths. The significant majority of cases have been managed in home isolation.

Vaccination efforts continue to target groups at greatest risk of measles infection, as well as those at

greatest risk of severe illness, including:

o Infants aged 6 to 11 months, who are being offered a ‘zero dose’

o Extended family contacts of suspected and confirmed cases

o Adolescents and young adults aged 10 to 24 years, not already picked up in the school program

o Travellers, in particular those aged 6 months to 24 years

The total number of vaccinations administered, as at 03/12/2019 is 15,124:

o Tongatapu: 10,371

o Ha’apai: 1,212

o ‘Eua: 823

o Vava’u: 2,560

o Niuatoputapu: 158