Saskatchewan didn’t report a case of measles for 21 days. Here’s why you should still care


Medical experts say that Saskatchewan residents must remain attentive to the threat of measles.

The news occurs when Alberta reported on Monday that he has confirmed 1,314 measles cases this year, which is higher than the number reported throughout the United States.

On the contrary, Saskatchewan has had only 60 cases confirmed this year, and from July 9 there had not been a single case reported in the province in the previous 21 days.

From 2015 to 2024, there were a total of two cases registered in Saskatchewan.

Dr. Jasmine Hasselback, a medical health officer of the Health Authority of Saskatchewan (SHA), acknowledged that the province has had “a little respite” in the number of cases, but added that they are expected more, pointing out an exhibition notice issued on Friday.

“The reality is that you should really act as if you had potential to see measles in all kinds of places,” said Hasselback.

Joseph Blondeau, a clinical microbiologist at Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon, offered a similar evaluation.

Blondeau said that although the number of cases in Alberta is producing headlines, measles remains a threat in Saskatchewan.

“It is likely that we are still going to see cases in Saskatchewan in the future. I don’t think this problem is over,” Blondeau said Monday.

Alberta Measles Explosion

As the number of measles cases in Alberta has triggered, medical experts in the province have continued to monitor the spread of the disease.

That includes Dr. Lynora Saxinger, a specialist in infectious diseases at the University of Alberta,

“We have not seen numbers like this in 25 years. In fact, at this time we are well above the last 25 years for all of Canada in Alberta,” Saxinger said.

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Alberta has the highest rate of per capita disease in North America. In an interview with CBC News, Dr. Lynora Saxinger explained how the high helmet is affecting the medical care system in the province.

Craig Jenne, a professor in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary, said that one of the reasons for the dramatic increase in the spread of the disease in Alberta is a fall in vaccination rates.

Jenne said that the immunity of the flock requires a vaccination rate of 95 percent or more. In Alberta, the vaccination rate has fallen below 50 percent.

That means that when a new measles case is introduced into a community, probably through trips, it can be extended from person to person in the community.

“Unfortunately, that’s what we are seeing in Alberta, and vaccine rates are simply too low to stop that propagation,” Jenne said.

Alberta An ‘Temprill-Warning’

It is not clear what are the current vaccination rates in Saskatchewan.

The Province’s Measles Website does not provide data on measles vaccination rates in the province and the Ministry of Health did not respond to a request for those numbers.

Another factor that Saskatchewan should take into account is measles transmissibility.

“We think of the days of Covid and all public health restrictions that were implemented to avoid Covid transmission,” Blondeau said.

“The measles virus is in a very, very different magnitude than Covid. In terms of its transmissibility, it is much more transmissible.”

Saxinger said that measles transmissibility is a concern in Alberta, especially with great events, such as Calgary stampede, only concludes.

Only time will say if that could produce even more cases, said Saxinger.

Craig Jenne uses a white laboratory layer and stands in an atrium, looking directly at the camera.
Craig Jenne, professor of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary, believes that Alberta should serve as an early warning to other provinces. (Jennifer Lee/CBC)

Jenne said Alberta is not unique and should serve as an “early warning” to other provinces.

“There is a very narrow and fleeting window at this time to raise those numbers and be able to protect other jurisdictions before measles wins a support point.”

The SHA recommends that everyone be vaccinated against measles. More information about this process in Saskatchewan is available on its website.



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