Prognosis
Parents Blamed for Deadly Measles Comeback Around the World
- Cases surged by about 50% last year, preliminary WHO data show
- ‘Vaccine hesitancy’ added to WHO’s list of top health threats
Photographer: scyther5/iStockphoto via Getty Images
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A growing band of immunization detractors is driving a surge in measles cases from the Philippines to Washington State that threatens to derail efforts to wipe out the disease.
Worldwide cases of the viral illness increased by about 50 percent to more than 229,000 last year, according to preliminary data from the World Health Organization, which included “vaccine hesitancy” in its list of top ten threats to global health this year. The contagion has cropped up in Israel, Greece, Madagascar, the Ukraine and Venezuela, among others.