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During 2001-2002, two outbreaks of measles
occurred in Venezuelan states near the border with northern Colombia
(measles vaccination coverage in these states was lower compared Venezuela
General, e.g., Falcón, 44%; Zulia, 34% vs. 84%). The outbreak
spread to Colombia in January, 2001 and ended after implementation
of a statewide vaccination campaign for children aged 1-14 years.
During these outbreaks, measles surveillance has been heightened by
using active case searches in both countries, with 2198 suspected
cases detected (5.4 per 100000 population) in Colombia and 6380 (26.5)
in Venezuela. The age groups most affected were children aged <5
years, children aged 5-9 years, and persons aged 20-29 years. Finally,
editors concluded that low vaccination coverage in Venezuela and deficiencies
in surveillance contributed to the outbreak (31).
As a conclusion, measures to control measles outbreaks must include
1) partnerships with local municipalities and international health
organizations (e.g., WHO, UNICEF), 2) rapid identification and vaccination
of groups at high risk (e.g., health-care workers, migrants, and tourist
industry personnel), 3) an additional dose at 6-9 months for Infants
at high risk (HIV-infected, vitamin A deficient, in closed communities
such as refugee camps, or in the face of an outbreak), 4) house-to-house
monitoring of vaccination coverage, 5) heightened surveillance in
all regions of the endemic countries.
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References
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W, Reinach SG, et al. Measles, mumps and rubella immunisation at nine
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