Measles continues to spread in the WHO European Region, with over 42 200 cases reported by 41 Member States for 2023. Among the countries most affected in the Region, Kazakhstan has recorded the highest incidence with 13 677 cases in 2023, which corresponds to over 639 cases per million population. There have been over 11 300 reported cases among children under 14 years of age in the country, with 70% of them being unvaccinated against measles.
As in other countries of the Region, the virus is spreading rapidly and the outbreak is attributed largely to an accumulation of susceptible children who missed routine immunization doses during the COVID-19 pandemic; 65% of the reported measles cases in Kazakhstan have been children under 5 years of age.
“We have seen a surge in measles cases in recent months and most of them are under 5 years of age, but there are also unvaccinated adults,” said Minister of Health Azhar Giniyat. “There are currently 2167 children in hospital with measles, 27 of them in a serious condition. We encourage parents to bring their children for vaccination, especially those who have not been immunized before.”
Health authorities in Kazakhstan have initiated extensive outbreak response measures to interrupt transmission of the virus, including:
- isolation of patients confirmed with measles;
- daily medical observation of contact persons for 21 days;
- vaccination of contact persons under 30 years old;
- supplementary immunization activities, including offering an early (so-called “zero”) dose of measles/mumps/rubella (MMR) vaccine to children aged 6–10 months, a (potentially supplemental) dose to all children aged 2–4 years (regardless of previous vaccination status), and a dose to unvaccinated health workers;
- catch-up immunization for all children under 18 years of age who missed routine vaccination;
- awareness-raising efforts to educate the public on prevention of infectious diseases, with a particular focus on measles since February 2023.
To implement the vaccination campaigns, the government purchased an additional 1.5 million doses of MMR vaccine. According to the Ministry of Health, as of 10 January 2024, 1 140 000 individuals have been vaccinated through the supplemental immunization activities started in November 2023, in addition to those vaccinated through routine immunization services.
“Measles is highly infectious, but fortunately, can be effectively prevented through vaccination,” said Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe. “I commend Kazakhstan for the urgent measures being taken to stop the spread of this dangerous disease. WHO will continue to support the current outbreak response as well as long-term strengthening of the immunization programme to prevent future outbreaks.”
WHO support
The WHO Country Office in Kazakhstan has been providing technical support for the outbreak response. “Our country team together with the in-country partners have been working closely with the health authorities to facilitate supply and delivery of vaccines as well as collection of immunization and surveillance data to determine where the virus is spreading and who is vulnerable. This information is pivotal to plan an effective response as efficiently as possible and protect the unvaccinated,” said Dr Skender Syla, WHO Representative in Kazakhstan.