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An unvaccinated French child who went on vacation with his parents in Costa Rica is suspected of having reintroduced measles in this country of Central America.
The five-year-old boy and his parents entered the country on February 18, the Costa Rican Ministry of Health said.
The authorities have quarantined the boy in a hospital and are looking for people with whom he may have been in contact since his arrival.
Read more: WHO: Anti-vaccination campaigns threaten global health
Costa Rica, which reported a case of measles for the last time in 2014, also asked France to determine whether the people encountered by the boy encountered could also be infected.
Measles is very contagious and dangerous
The highly infectious airborne disease is caused by a virus and can in extreme cases be fatal. His symptoms include rashes and severe fever.
Read more: The rate of triple measles infection in Germany
Effective vaccine
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), measles vaccine has averted 21.1 million deaths worldwide between 2000 and 2017.
Despite its effectiveness, some people questioned the need for the vaccine and claimed that it harmed the children who receive it.
Europe has recently seen an increase in reported measles cases. The WHO figures show that the total number of cases recorded in the first half of 2018 was higher than that of the previous five years combined.
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