In Bordeaux, a 17-year-old young woman died at the Bordeaux University Hospital “as a result of neurological complications” linked to measles, the Regional Health Agency (ARS) of Nouvelle-Aquitaine announced on Friday July 6 in a statement.
This is the third death from this contagious disease in France in 2018. In June 2018, a 26-year-old man died, also in New Aquitaine and a 32-year-old mother last February in Poitiers. She had not been vaccinated and had contracted the disease while taking her father to the hospital.
“90% of cases were not or insufficiently vaccinated”
In Nouvelle-Aquitaine, “since November 6, 2017, 1,096 cases of measles have been confirmed (2,567 in France in total), 1 in 4 cases required hospitalization, 12 patients were transferred to intensive care and 2 died ( 3 in France). Nearly 90% of cases were not or insufficiently vaccinated (2 doses necessary) “, we can read in the press release of the ARS.
The ARS recalls that measles is not a mild disease and can “lead to respiratory (pneumopathies) and neurological (meningoencephalitis) complications”. In addition, the disease is very contagious, an infected person can infect 20. While drugs can be given to relieve the symptoms, there is no treatment.
The Agency stresses the importance of vaccination “which has proven its effectiveness in limiting its spread and avoiding serious consequences”. It calls on the population to check their vaccination status, the only way to protect themselves and avoid infecting the most vulnerable such as children under one year of age or immunocompromised people who cannot benefit from the vaccination.
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