Malnutrition found in 65pc of measles-infected children: Study

About 65 percent of children infected with measles were suffering from malnutrition, according to a study conducted by Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute (BSHI) and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b). Of them, 12 percent were severely malnourished and 53 percent moderately malnourished.

The findings were presented at a dissemination meeting on measles research at the auditorium of the Shishu Hospital in the capital on Wednesday (August 19) .

The study included 354 children admitted to hospital with measles. It found that 43 percent of the infected children were aged between 3 and 9 months. Of these children, 38 percent did not receive exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months of life. Among the children who died, this rate was 82 percent, meaning a large portion of children who died from measles did not receive exclusive breastfeeding during their first six months .

Based on age and vaccination history, researchers divided 341 children into four groups. Among 146 children under 9 months who were not yet eligible for routine vaccination, 142 or 97.3 percent tested positive for measles. Among 126 children who were of vaccination age but had not received any dose, 122 or 97 percent were infected. Among 48 children who had received one dose, 44 or 92 percent tested positive, and among 21 children who had received both recommended doses, 16 or 76 percent were infected .

However, researchers noted that the 76 percent figure for fully vaccinated children should not be interpreted as the infection rate among all vaccinated children, as all participants in the study were already hospitalised with suspected measles. The findings are specific to the 21 vaccinated suspected patients included in this hospital-based investigation . They said further research is needed to determine why these children contracted measles despite being fully vaccinated .

The meeting was chaired by Professor A K M Azizul Haque, chairman of the BSHI governing board. The chief guest was State Minister for Health and Family Welfare M A Muhit. Special guests included Director General of Health Services Professor Probhat Chandra Biswas, Director Md Nurul Islam and IEDCR Director Kazi Ahmed Zaki. The main study findings were presented by BSHI Director Professor Mirza Mohammad Ziaul Islam and icddr,b Senior Director Mustafizur Rahman.