Confederation does not currently expect a major measles epidemic
Published: Monday, Feb 12th 2024, 15:00
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The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) is not currently expecting a major measles epidemic - despite an increase in cases. However, individual cases and smaller outbreaks cannot be ruled out.
"The current vaccination coverage rate for measles in Switzerland should prevent a major epidemic," wrote FOPH media spokesperson Daniel Dauwalder on Monday in response to an inquiry from the Keystone-SDA news agency. In Switzerland, the vaccination coverage rate for small children against measles is 94 percent.
Twelve cases of measles were registered in Switzerland in the first five weeks of the current year, according to the FOPH bulletin published on the same day. In the same period last year, there were only four cases, while 40 infections were recorded in 2023 as a whole.
Since 2023, an increase in measles cases has already been seen again in many cases, including in Switzerland, explained Dauwalder. Previously, the measures against the coronavirus pandemic had also greatly reduced the spread of measles in Europe and Switzerland.
Not a single case of measles was registered in Switzerland in 2021. According to the FOPH spokesperson, the 40 cases last year correspond to a level that was also seen in the years before the coronavirus pandemic. These were often sporadic cases in which someone had been infected abroad - or smaller outbreaks after the pathogen had been introduced into Switzerland.
According to the information, the twelve cases since the beginning of this year also include an outbreak on the campus of the Lausanne hotel management school. On February 2, the Vaud authorities ordered the school to close until next Sunday. This followed six students falling ill with measles since mid-January and around 20 other students showing symptoms.
In recent weeks, measles outbreaks in Germany have made the headlines, including one in Cologne. In Austria, there have been 55 confirmed cases of measles in six federal states since the beginning of the year, according to the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF). This comes after 186 cases were reported in 2023. According to the ORF radio program "Ö1-Morgenjournal", the vaccination rate for young children is between 80 and 90 percent, which is lower than in Switzerland.
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