Since 15 March this year, health officials have documented a staggering 183,449 patients displaying symptoms consistent with measles, whilst 20,851 cases have been definitively confirmed through medical testing. The casualties associated with the surge have reached alarming levels: 975 individuals have died from suspected measles symptoms, and 101 deaths have been confirmed as directly caused by the virus, bringing the cumulative fatalities to over a thousand. This month alone accounts for 97 deaths, reflecting a severe and sustained transmission rate.

Hospital admissions underscore the strain placed upon the country’s healthcare system. Since mid-March, 162,048 patients presenting with suspected measles symptoms have required hospital care. Healthcare workers have managed to treat and discharge 155,612 patients so far, but facilities remain under constant pressure from fresh admissions.

Regional data from the latest 24-hour cycle indicates that Dhaka Division remains the hardest-hit area, reporting 382 suspected cases and six deaths, five of which occurred in Dhaka District alone. Chittagong Division recorded the second-highest caseload with 238 suspected infections and two fatalities. Meanwhile, Khulna, Rangpur, and Sylhet divisions each reported one death linked to measles symptoms within the same period.

Public health analysts and international bodies, including several United Nations agencies, view this ongoing emergency as the worst measles outbreak in the nation’s history, marked by record numbers of infections and child casualties. The surge began early in the year, yet initial preventive measures were largely absent. Experts attribute the catastrophic scale of the crisis to severe lapses in routine immunisation programmes under the previous interim administration, where falling vaccination coverage left large cohorts of young children unprotected against this highly contagious viral disease.