Largest epidemic in years Number of measles cases increases drastically in Cologne

Cologne · The number of measles cases increases in Cologne drastically. The city council counts 67 instances already and advises adults to check their own vaccination status. There are also cases in Bonn and the region.

Amongst the infected are four toddlers under 12 months and two babies under six months - plus many kindergarten and school children. Several infected have to be treated in hospitals. The oldest measles patient is 62 years old. Two young men were transferred into intensive care in the past two weeks.

Most patients are between 20 and 25 years old, says Gerhard Wiesmüller, director of Cologne’s department for infections and environmental hygiene. The reason: Low vaccination numbers in those age groups. A lot of children were vaccinated only once or not at all. A double vaccination should be the norm now though. „The infected people are not the typical anti-immunisation lobby, but from all parts of the population.“ He adds that measles are a dangerous disease which can take a serious turn. Also, one in 1000 cases leads to encephalitis, which is in turn fatal for 20 to 30 percent of all cases.

There were also five measles cases registered in Bonn this year. The vaccination average/quota for school kids is about 93.6 % currently, according to city council reports. But it can be expected that, looking at the increasing age of the patients, the insufficient immunisation numbers will continue to have an impact on teenagers and young adults.

The Rhein-Sieg-Kreis registered ten cases, eight in April and three in the past week alone. 2017 only saw three cases in total, 2016 only one single case. A dramatic increase can be noticed clearly.

Original text: Andreas Dyck

Translation: Mareike Graepel

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