Measles warning from TTB President Alpay Azap: 'One of the most contagious diseases in the world'

Burak DEMİRBAŞ / 12punto EXCLUSIVE

Republican People's Party (CHP) Bursa Deputy and Public Health Professor Dr. Kayıhan Pala had previously asked the Ministry of Health for national data on measles three times but did not receive a response. 

In the motion he submitted, the CHP's Pala asked the Ministry of Health the following:

"While there were 51 cases in 2021, this number rose to 127 in 2022. In 2023, it caused an outbreak, and 5,004 people were diagnosed with measles. The number of people diagnosed in the first five months of 2024 is 1,104. However, the Ministry of Health is not making any statements regarding these data. The Ministry has not published the 2023 Health Statistics Yearbook, despite 8 months having passed. For this reason, with 4 months left until the end of 2024, there is no data published by the Ministry of Health even regarding the number of measles cases and immunization rates for 2023. We are deprived of data for a period of 20 months."

ANTI-VACCINATION SENTIMENT IS RISING

Drawing attention to the increasing measles cases and the importance of the measles vaccine, Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Specialist and Turkish Medical Association (TTB) President Prof. Dr. Alpay Azap spoke to 12punto about the rise in cases.

Alpay Azap stated the following:

"The Ministry reports the data to the WHO as confirmed cases. We see the data when the WHO announces it. The figures mentioned by Professor Kayıhan are the figures announced by the WHO; therefore, we learn about the cases a few months later. Even when we look at those, it is clear that there is an increase." 

Pointing out that anti-vaccination sentiment among families is increasing, Prof. Dr. Azap highlighted the anti-vaccination sentiment in society and said, "We have the measles vaccine on hand; there is no problem at this point, but having the vaccine is not enough; people need to get vaccinated. There is a serious problem here; unfortunately, there is significant anti-vaccination sentiment in society. The number of families refusing to have their children vaccinated is increasing. When the disease was severe, everyone was racing to get Covid vaccines. Now that the disease has become milder, unfortunately, Covid vaccines have also started to be disparaged," he said.

THE 95 PERCENT RULE

Emphasizing the importance of herd immunity in vaccination, Prof. Dr. Azap continued his words as follows:

"Unfortunately, human perception works this way. When the severity of the disease is neglected, the vaccine is also seen as unnecessary, but the vaccine saves lives. The measles vaccine is a vaccine that has been administered for many years, and we do not see measles cases because the measles vaccine is administered. As soon as there is a deficiency in vaccination, measles is a disease that causes outbreaks. Because it is one of the most contagious diseases in the world, 95 percent of the population must be vaccinated; we were talking about this during Covid as well, we call this herd immunity. When 95 percent of the population is vaccinated, measles outbreaks can be prevented. The fact that this outbreak is occurring shows that we are quite far from that target. There are also regional differences. Vaccination is lower in some regions of Turkey."

'EVEN A SINGLE APPLICATION IS SIGNIFICANT'

Stating that they are also receiving information from the field that there are measles cases, Prof. Dr. Azap said, "Ultimately, because this is a very contagious disease, even a single application to a hospital is significant. It shows that there is measles in that vicinity."

News Source: Burak Demirbaş