Mar 10, Kathmandu - The Ministry of Health and Population has announced an urgent vaccination campaign against measles in Dhorpatan Municipality, Baglung, following confirmed cases of the disease.

Approximately 7,000 children aged 10 to 20 within the municipality will receive measles vaccinations, according to Dr. Abhiyan Gautam, Head of the Child Health and Vaccination Division at the Department of Health Services.

Recent tests conducted at the National Public Health Laboratory confirmed measles infections among five individuals in wards 7, 8, and 9 of the municipality. Additionally, 56 suspected cases are currently under surveillance.

Dr. Gautam stated that teams, including doctors, have been dispatched from the federal and provincial health offices to contain the outbreak. He explained that a recent case involved an individual who contracted measles after returning from India in the first week of Falgun.

"The patient had gone to the hospital for treatment without informing anyone, and it is suspected that the infection spread from there," Gautam said. "Since measles can spread rapidly—up to 18 people from a single case—the recent outbreak was identified only after the infection had already begun to spread locally."

Measles is highly contagious, and one infected individual can transmit the disease to up to 18 others. Currently, 14 samples from suspected cases have been sent to the National Public Health Laboratory in Teku for testing. As of now, around 30 individuals exhibiting measles-like symptoms are hospitalized in the affected area.