CHP calls for vigilance amid global surge in measles
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) on Thursday warned of a surge in measles infections globally, adding there have been three cases in Hong Kong this year so far. The CHP said more than 300,000 cases were reported globally last year, up 80 percent from 2022. It cited lower vaccination coverage rates in Asian and European countries after the pandemic for the upsurge in measles cases. The centre said one of the three local patients, a man aged 22, went to Malaysia during the incubation period. The other two patients – an 11-month-old baby boy and a three-year-old boy – had not travelled outside of Hong Kong. The CHP said people who have not been infected or jabbed should get inoculated, adding that children aged under one who are not due for the first dose of vaccine should not travel to places where outbreaks of measles have been reported.