The province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health on Friday warned of the growing number of new measles cases.
Dr. Kieran Moore advised of 173 new cases in the past few weeks, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Ontario to 350 since 2024.
This includes 31 hospitalizations.
According to the update, “Over 96 per cent of cases in Ontario are among individuals who are unimmunized, or have unknown immunization status, and were exposed in their community or while travelling. A majority of Ontario’s cases are concentrated in southwestern Ontario among unvaccinated people.
“Measles spreads easily among those who aren’t vaccinated and can lead to serious health issues including pneumonia, respiratory failure, swelling of the brain, and in rare cases, death.”
Locally, at a Southwestern Public Health briefing on March 6, Medical Officer of Health Dr. Ninh Tran noted there have been 136 cases in the health unit coverage area since Oct. of last year.
He stressed the outbreak is mostly impacting those who are not up to date with their vaccinations.
As part of routine vaccination schedules, children should receive two doses of the measles vaccine, their first at 12 months and a second when they are between four to six years old. If you are not sure about your immunization status, contact your health care provider or your local health unit.
Written by Ian McCallum
