Abstract
Background
Measles outbreaks in immunocompromised populations present a significant challenge, and to interrupt endemic transmission can be difficult. This study aimed to investigate measles in pediatric oncology patients at Hue Central Hospital, Vietnam to describe demographic, epidemiological, and clinical features.
Methods
Potential measles infections among children with cancer were prospectively identified between April 20 to July 10, 2019 at Hue Central Hospital. Measles diagnoses were based on both clinical features and IgM laboratory evaluation. Data were abstracted from patient medical records and analyzed in SPSS v.18.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA).
Results
From April 20 to July 10 in 2019, a total of 11 patients with malignancies were identified as having measles, with a median age of 4.0 years (range: 1 years to 9 years). Of these 11 patients, 2 (18.2%) had not received any dose of measles vaccine, 4 (36.4%) had received 1 dose of measles vaccine, and 5 (45.5%) had received the recommended 2 doses. All patients had fever with the median temperature of 39 degrees Celsius (range: 38.5–39.5), and median fever duration of 7 days. All patients had cough and rash, while 3 (27.3%) were complicated by pneumonia, and 2 (18.2%) had elevated liver transaminases. All patients had hospital visits or were hospitalized before measles onset, with the median length of stay of 10 days (range: 7–24 days). All patients were likely to exposed each other. 100% of these patients recovered.
Conclusions
Children with cancer are at extra risk of measles infection due to their immunocompromised status. Getting vaccinated is the best way to prevent measles, and improved infection control is critical for the prevention of measles in patients with malignancies. Following this measles outbreak, a designated outpatient area was established to separate the inpatient unit and limit hospital transmission.
