Measles is on the rise again: the number of infections reported worldwide rose by almost 80 percent at the beginning of the year, as the UN child protection organization Unicef ​​and the World Health Organization WHO announced on Wednesday.

One reason is the vaccination campaigns that were interrupted by the corona pandemic.

Missing vaccinations threatened the lives of millions of children, the UN agencies warned.

In the first two months of this year, more than 17,300 measles cases were registered worldwide, significantly more than the 9,600 cases in the same months last year.

In a 12-month period through April, there have been 21 major measles outbreaks worldwide, most of them in Africa and the eastern Mediterranean.

As the most contagious vaccine-preventable infectious disease, measles acted as an alarm signal, Unicef ​​expert Christopher Gregory told AFP.

Measles outbreaks indicated weaknesses in immunization campaigns.

For example, an early increase in yellow fever infections is to be feared.

An increasing number of cases are already being reported from West Africa.

Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Ethiopia have been particularly badly affected by measles in the past twelve months.

The experts fear an increase in cases in Ukraine as a result of the Russian war of aggression.

The country already recorded the highest measles infection rates in Europe in the years from 2017 to 2019.

Vaccinations postponed due to corona pandemic

According to the UN agencies, more than 23 million children missed routine measles vaccinations at the beginning of the corona pandemic in 2020.

In 43 countries, the vaccination campaigns that were postponed due to the pandemic have not yet been fully made up for.

203 million people are affected, most of them children.

WHO Secretary-General Tedro Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on Wednesday that the consequences of these interruptions in vaccination campaigns would be felt for decades to come.

It is time to get basic immunization against infectious diseases up and running again.

Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that spreads faster than the flu or Ebola.

Life-threatening complications such as pneumonia or meningitis can occur.