16 people die of measles in West Seram

M. Azis Tunny, The Jakarta Post, Ambon

Sixteen West Seram residents have died of measles in the past three weeks, a senior government official said on Wednesday. The huge fatalities were due to low awareness among people about the communicable disease, said Hugmon Sesa, the head of the Seram Health, Manpower and People's Welfare Office.

"People don't believe in modern science. They still resort to traditional methods of combating the disease and it leads to huge fatalities," said Hugmon.

The official said the residents had actually been briefed on the symptoms of measles. They had also been told to bring people with measles immediately to the hospital for treatment, but the calls had fallen on deaf ears.

They have tried to cure the sick by giving them water blessed with incantations or mantras to drink, said Hugmon.

Hugmon said his office had deployed a team of health officials to help curb the impact of the measles outbreak in Tahalupu subdistrict, a remote village in West Seram regency, Maluku.

Measles, also called rubeola, is usually associated with a skin rash. It is, however, primarily a respiratory infection. The first symptoms are irritability, a runny nose, bloodshot eyes, sensitivity to light, hacking cough, and a fever as high as 40.6 degrees Celsius.

Fever peaks with the appearance of the rash, usually three days after the other symptoms, which typically begins on the forehead, then spreads downward over the face, neck, and body. It usually takes about three days for the rash to make its way down to the feet. Once the rash appears on the legs and feet, symptoms usually subside within two days.

Complications of measles can include: ear infections, convulsions due to the fever (febrile convulsions), pneumonia, conjunctivitis and occasionally more serious eye problems. The heart and nervous system may also be affected. Measles can be fatal or lead to continuing disability, so prevention is the best option, as no cure yet exists, according to Medinfo.co.uk.