These two diseases have just resurfaced in the schools of Antananarivo and Ankazobe. These epidemics are linked to low vaccination coverage of children over the past two years.
Doctors from hospitals in Tana andAnkazobe are under pressure. Between allergies due to pollution, bronchiolitis, the reappearance of epidemics of measles and rubella, they no longer have a minute to spare.
Especially since at the same time, emergency services must accommodate all victims of accidents and “traditional” diseases.
Madagascar Express met the parents of the little victims of these rashes: “My eldest was the first touchdown. After three days, the rashes disappeared. He had no fever. A few days later, my youngest son had pimples on his body and face. With him, the disease was more longue,” explains a mother.
Doctors must quickly identify the disease from which the children suffer. Rubella is usually “mild”, while measles can be much more complicated. In 2018, during the previous measles epidemic, doctors had deplored several deaths.
Isolation of the patient and the children in the class is one of the few solutions. “These diseases are very contagious. We must preserve the most vulnerable. It’s better if the children who show symptoms do not go to school”, confides a school doctor.
