Of the confirmed cases at that time, 68.8% had not received the measles vaccine. To contain the outbreak, the health authorities carried out 110 vaccination fences in three of the states with infections and applied 57,923 doses of the measles vaccine to both the contacts of the sick people and the inhabitants of those states.
In 2021 and 2022, no new infections were registered in Mexico, according to data from the General Directorate of Epidemiology of the federal Ministry of Health.
However, PAHO warns that the risk is latent in all the countries of the Americas due to low vaccination coverage, because there are active outbreaks of measles in Brazil and due to the migratory flow of vulnerable populations.
PAHO Recommendations
The regional health agency urged countries to follow the recommendations and meetings of the Technical Advisory Group on Vaccine-Preventable Diseases.
He also called for intensifying vaccination in high-risk municipalities; maintain a reserve of measles vaccines for preventive actions against possible imported cases and strengthen epidemiological surveillance.
In addition, it advised vaccinating against measles and rubella to all people who travel, six months of age and older, and cannot show proof of vaccination or immunity.
“At least two weeks before traveling to areas where measles transmission has been documented,” he added.
