95 measles cases in Canada have been reported so far this year, with Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba informing new cases in the last week, says the director of Public Health of Canada.
That is in contrast to 147 cases for last year.
“The fact that … the numbers are growing this year demonstrates how this virus can spread if people were not vaccinated,” said Dr. Theresa Tam to CBC News on Tuesday.
“What I would like to see is that we stop these outbreaks on their clues so that it is not rooted in the Canadian context.”
The most recent data of the Canadian Public Health Agency (Phac) show 34 new cases in the week of February 8, but that figure is already outdated because the Ontario outbreaks have grown.
Tam says that an outbreak that now covers several provinces began in October NEW BRUNSWICK.
The first person known for being infected in the Grand Erie Public Health Region of Southwest Ontario, traveled to New Brunswick to attend a wedding, says the Interim Health Medical Officer of the region, Dr. Malcolm Lock.
“I understand that a measles -infected traveler [from Europe] He attended that wedding, “Lock said.” Because of that, the disease was transmitted to several people who were there, who in turn have now returned to their own communities, and if those communities are not very immunized, then it is just a waterfall. “
The resulting outbreak in Brantford, Ontario, and the surrounding counties move quickly, Lock said, since it started before Christmas and apparently has not yet reached its maximum point.
Measles is a highly contagious virus that is more dangerous for children under five years.
The virus spreads easily through the air and can cause a pirate cough, high fever and a red and stained eruption.
Measles can lead to high hospitalization rates. What is more? My dear Almost one to three out of every 1,000 children who infect will die from respiratory and neurological complications, such as pneumonia and brain damage.
Speaking in general, Lock says that measles can lead to “unpleasant complications, particularly in children of higher respiratory problems, pneumonia and in some cases meningitis and encephalitis.” Problems can persist throughout life.
Dr. Sarah Wilson, a Public Health Medical with Public Health Ontario in Toronto, says that the province expects to add 50 to 60 new cases in its update at the end of this week. It is the largest outbreak of Ontario in more than a quarter of a century.
“I did not expect that in my career I would have to respond and support a measles outbreak like this,” Wilson said. “It is very dramatic to see the large number of cases and see how fast they are accumulating. But … I am also sure that we have a measles control strategy and that is vaccination.”
Manitoba health officials have confirmed five cases related to an Ontario outbreak.
Measles does not have a specific treatment.
For prevention, two doses of the measles vaccine are considered enough for complete protection in both adults and children. The first dose is generally administered to babies at 12 to 15 months, and the second before the child begins the school.
While measles was eliminated in Canada in 1998 through generalized vaccination, cases still occur sporadically. Between 1998 and 2024, an average of 91 cases has been reported every year, the majority acquired by travel outside the country.
Most of the cases reported in Canada occur among unvaccinated people, many of whom are children, including babies under one that have not yet had the opportunity to be vaccinated, says Phac.
Vaccine absorption decreases
Since December, Quebec has also been experiencing measles. The last outbreak of the province includes 28 cases, with the area of the purses to the north of Montreal, the toughest blow with 21.
Dr. Éric Goyer, Director of Public Health of the Laurentians, says that the virus was also introduced in that region by abroad travelers.
Goyer says that his agency is encouraging children and students to be completely vaccinated. The staff is also working to ensure that those who are not vaccinated are outside the school until the outbreak ends.
Tam says that the outbreak in the Laurentians began at a conference in Montreal.
In 2024, A published study In the Canadian Journal of Public Health, he discovered that there was a decrease in measles vaccination in children in 2023 compared to 2019.
The outbreaks are “probably related to the bad absorption of the vaccine more than anything else,” said Dr. Earl Rubin, director of the Infectious Diseases Division of the Children’s Hospital in Montreal.
Dr. Jia HU, Public Health Medical and Interim Medical Lead for immunization programs in the service of preventable vaccines of the BC Center for disease control, says that something as contagious as measles, the absorption of the vaccine must be as high as possible.
The two cases of BC measles in 2025 have been related to trips, says Hu.
Public health officials are encouraging people to make sure their immunizations are updated ahead of any trip this spring, since measles outbreaks are also underway in Texas, along with tens of thousands of cases in Europe, and In Asia and Africa.
