‘This is a big problem’: Alberta doctors sound alarm as measles count breaks 300

Measles, which is a vaccine-preventable disease, is surging across Alberta, as 313 confirmed cases have been reported as of Thursday. This is the highest number seen in the province since the 1980s.

As new cases continue to pop up, Alberta doctors came together on Thursday to warn the public of the deadly disease, while urging vaccination.

Measles resurfaced in the province about two months ago.

“Once you get to 1,000 cases, you can expect between one and three deaths. Measles could also lead to serious complications like deafness, seizures or problems with mental development,” said Dr. James Talbot, a former Alberta Chief Medical Officer of Health.

The health minister acknowledged on Monday that more needs to be done to prevent the spread of measles and an advertising campaign urging vaccinations is set to start next week.

“This is a big problem, and it could get out of control quickly,” said Dr. Shelley Duggan, President of the Alberta Medical Association.

The Alberta Medical Association president has applauded the new campaign as well as increased access to vaccination clinics.

But the NDP is accusing the government of being too slow to respond to an obvious emergency, with 19 people hospitalized so far.

“The government waited until we went from a few dozen cases to 200 cases before they started raising alarms, now we’re over 300 cases and more people are requiring hospitalization,” said Sarah Hoffman, Alberta NDP Health Critic.

The health minister says they have been ramping up the response as measles went from an issue mostly contained within families to wider community spread.

“We are now at 68 per cent increase in immunization (compared to last year), so we are getting that information out. Of course, we want people who are unimmunized or underimmunized to get out and get those immunizations. So, we’re going to continue to do that work. It’s having results,” said Adriana LaGrange, Alberta Health Minister.

Another reason the doctors chose to speak out was to combat online voices who claim vaccines are not safe, despite overwhelming scientific evidence to the contrary.

“Disinformation is misinformation put there for a reason, and this is actually a big business. People profit from disinformation campaigns, and they are increasingly prevalent on social media. And it is getting worse,” said Dr. Lynora Saxinger, infectious disease specialist.

Measles symptoms include fever, coughing, a runny nose, red eyes, and a blotchy, red rash that appears three to seven days after the fever starts.

Alberta has a new measles hotline at 1-844-944-3434 where people can check their immunization records or book appointments. There is also a webpage with measles numbers and information.