Summary of the situation
Between November 2016 and December 2017, countries of the WHO European Region reported 17,584 measles cases; 91% (n=15,978) of these cases were reported in 2017. 1 In this period, the highest cumulative incidence rate was reported in Romania (291.5 cases per 1 million population), followed by Italy (83.2 cases per 1 million population), and Tajikistan (77.2 cases per 1 million population). The WHO European Region monthly summary of the measles epidemiological data by country is available at: http://bit.ly/2BZJWW6.
Of the reported cases in the European Region between January and October 2017 (n=15,978), 55% (8,842) were confirmed by laboratory testing (serology, virus detection, or isolation) and 45% (7,136) were classified as epidemiologically linked or clinically compatible (Figure 1). There were 26 measles deaths reported, 15 of which were reported in Romania. The identified genotypes in the countries with the highest incidence rates were B3 and D8 in Romania, B3, D8, and H1 in Italy, and H1 in Tajikistan.
Most of the cases were reported in the age group between 0 and 14 years of age, accounting for 57% of the total cases.
Countries in other continents (China, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Mongolia, Nigeria, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand, and Vietnam, among others) have also reported measles outbreaks between 2016 and 2017.
