Deadly Measles Outbreak in Morocco Claims 5 Lives, Mostly Children

Measles, locally known as ’Bouhamroun’, is affecting the inhabitants of "Tamttouchte" in the Aït Hani community. Already five deaths have been recorded. Information confirmed on the Al3omk website by an official source from the Aït Hani community who specified that most of these deaths concern children. According to this source, the municipality needs new ambulances - it only has two - to transport serious measles cases to hospitals to receive care and save them from deteriorating health. He also pleaded for the organization of a medical campaign in the region and the vaccination of the inhabitants to avoid a deterioration of the health situation.

The provincial delegation of the Ministry of Health in Tinghir had conducted a measles vaccination campaign a few months ago, before everyone was surprised by the spread of the disease, the same source also said. In March, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection announced an increase in the number of measles cases in Morocco, recorded "in a global context marked by a significant increase in the number of cases and their spread around the world, including in Europe, Africa, the United States and other regions." Souss-Massa is the region most affected since mid-September 2023.

Speaking on the issue, Dr. Abdelghani Kharchafi, a family medicine specialist, said that measles is one of the diseases called eruptive fevers, diseases that combine fever and skin rashes. According to him, Bouhamroun is a viral disease that is not new and was widespread in the world decades ago. The specialist said that the disease has not completely disappeared despite vaccination, because it is an endemic disease that appears in the form of isolated cases and can sometimes cause limited outbreaks, especially in areas where vaccine coverage is low. According to his explanations, the disease affecting the respiratory system spreads easily when the infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes. What about its consequences? It can cause serious complications that can lead to the patient’s death, notes Dr. Kharchafi, noting however that it is, in most cases, a benign disease.