Morocco is witnessing an “unusual” situation with the spread of measles, known among the popular circles as “Bohamroun,” with 25,000 infections and 120 deaths recorded since September 2023.
Mohamed El-Youbi, Director of the Directorate of Epidemiology and Disease Control at the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, said that the current situation of the spread of Bouhamroun disease among Moroccans can be called an epidemic, stressing that the situation is “unusual since September 2023.”
According to the clarifications provided by Al-Youbi in a statement to Hespress, “There is a widespread spread of “Bou Hamroun”, as since September 2023, 25 thousand cases have been recorded. Whereas earlier, we recorded three to four cases annually.”
As for deaths, Al-Youbi confirmed that, as of last Sunday, 120 people had died as a result of complications from “Bohamroun,” stating that these people were from all categories; But most of them are children under five years old and even adults over 37 years old.
The Director of the Directorate of Epidemiology and Disease Control at the Ministry of Health and Social Protection stated that “Morocco was involved in the global goal of eliminating measles, and the vaccination rate against the disease exceeded 95 percent; But when this percentage decreased, the disease began to spread widely,” he explained, explaining that “the virus is transmitted from a sick person to a healthy person. But if a person is vaccinated, the possibility of transmitting the infection to him is reduced.”
-The same official spoke about the Ministry of Health and Social Protection developing a plan to return coverage with the measles vaccine to more than 95 percent, noting that “a previous program has been developed that will be extended for an additional four weeks in order to know the vaccination status of people between 9 months and 14 years,” stating that research is being conducted. At the school level, and it can also be confirmed at the health center level.
Al-Youbi said: “The measles vaccine is administered in two doses. Therefore, anyone who did not receive the second dose, or two doses, must complete the program, regardless of his age,” he added, adding that “even in case of doubt, it is possible to receive a third dose, as it does not have any side complications or negative effects.”
In response to Hespress’s question about the possibility of considering that Morocco is experiencing an epidemic outbreak, the Director of the Directorate of Epidemiology and Disease Control at the Ministry responsible for the health sector confirmed the situation, saying: “The definition of an epidemic is the spread in an unusual way of a virus or disease; This applies to this case.”
