Niagara measles vaccinations short of public health target

Region is doing better than most with 90% of kids covered

Niagara is faring better than average when it comes to measles vaccinations, but still falls short of levels needed to protect people from the spread of the highly infectious disease.

As cases of the potentially deadly respiratory virus increase worldwide, Niagara Region Public Health is urging residents to ensure they have the protection they need, especially if they plan to travel, said Niagara’s associate medical officer of health, Dr. Jessica Jackman.

More than 42,000 measles cases were reported across Europe in 2023.

As of Thursday, Quebec reported its number of cases had risen to 12. In Ontario in the past few weeks, five case have been reported. No cases have been reported in Niagara.

While about 79 per cent of sevenyear-old children are vaccinated across Canada, according to the 2021 childhood National Immunization Coverage Survey, Niagara is faring better with about 90 per cent of school-aged children vaccinated.

“We’re very proud of that,” Jackman said.

“Our team has been working very hard to catch the kids who may not be up to date with their vaccines, which is really important to make sure they’re protected against measles.”

However, it isn’t enough. “Our aim is to get that number even higher.”

Because of how easily measles spreads, Jackman said at least 95 per cent of the population needs to be vaccinated to reach heard immunity — a level whereby enough of a population is immune to an infection, whether through previous infections or vaccination, to reducing the likelihood of infection among people who have no immunity.

“Measles is quite infectious. It spreads very easily and because of that it leads to a need to have the heard immunity a bit higher,” she said. “Measles is different than other viruses in that it spreads through the air as well. If you and I were in the same room, just by breathing in the same air it can spread.”

She said the virus can linger in a room and infect people for up to two hours after an infected individual leaves that room.

”It’s very infectious and that’s reflected in how high that 95 per cent heard immunity that we aim for is.”

Jackman said measles had been eliminated in Canada since 1998, as a result of vaccines that became widely available in the 1970s.

“But because we don’t see it anymore, people forget about how severe measles can be,” she said.

It can lead to hospitalization in about 20 to 25 per cent of cases, and it can lead to more serious illness and potentially death for one in 1,000 patients.

Niagara’s medical officer of health Dr. Azim Kasmani said people should not underestimate the potential severity of measles.

“If one in a thousand kids get really sick and gets encephalitis, brain inflammation, that’s a lot of kids that could potentially get really sick,” Kasmani said.

Jackman said available vaccines “are safe and very effective.”

While the virus can lead to very serious illness, she said “getting up to date with your vaccine is one of the best things you can do to protect yourself.”

Jackman advised people to visit their family doctor or local walk-inclinic if they need to be vaccinated, while public health offers vaccines for school-aged children.

“Especially with March break coming up, we really want to remind people to take a look at their vaccine record and see if they’re up to date with their routine vaccinations including measles, and trying to get vaccinated before any planned travel would be a helpful thing to do to protect people for their own health as well as the health of others.”

More information about measles, the vaccination schedule, and where to get vaccinated, is available at niagararegion.ca/health.

Measles symptoms often start with a cough, runny nose, red watery eyes, and fever, and a rash that looks like small red spots develops on the face and body three to seven days later.

Small white spots may also appear inside the mouth.

Niagara Region Public Health is urging residents to ensure they have the protection they need, especially if they plan to travel