463 confirmed cases and two deaths – MercoPress

"Venezuelan" measles strain entered Brazil: 463 confirmed cases and two deaths

Until June 20, 463 cases (200 in Roraima and 263 in Amazonas) were confirmed and 1545 are under investigation, said the ministry in a bulletin

According to studies by laboratory, the strain of the virus found in Brazil is the same in circulation in Venezuela, a country that suffers from a severe health crisis

Rio de Janeiro recorded the first two cases of measles in 18 years, reported the Ministry of Health of this state, after the virus has been found in another region of Brazil.

The body said in a statement that the patients are students of the Faculty of Law of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Last week, the Ministry of Health confirmed a measles outbreak in the states of Amazonas and Roraima, in the north of the country, where the virus has been eradicated since 2016.

Up to On June 20, 463 cases (200 in Roraima and 263 in Amazonas) were confirmed and 1,545 are under investigation, said the ministry in a bulletin. The only two measles deaths recorded this year occurred in Roraima, a state bordering Venezuela and the main beneficiary of the increasing flow of migrants from that country. According to laboratory studies, the virus strain found in Brazil is the same in circulation in Venezuela, a country that is suffering from a severe crisis with a high food shortage, basic products and medications. On the other hand, according to data from the Ministry of Health, up to June 11, two cases of measles were confirmed among the Yanomami Brazilian in the same border region and 24 other cases among Venezuelan natives. There are still 61 cases under investigation.

The human rights organization Survival International has issued an alert: "These communities are the most vulnerable.Emergency medical aid is the only thing that stands between them and the devastation", said the director, Stephen Corry. Measles is a contagious, respiratory disease caused by a virus. Red spots on the skin, fever, cough and conjunctivitis are some of the symptoms.

Vaccination in Brazil is permanent and not stationary, but the government has stepped up operations because of recent low immunization rates and the reappearance of the vaccine. disease.