Answers from Health Dept in Eire re measles outbreak 2000 (Deaths)
Informed Parent Issue 2, 2001
12. Regarding the 2 deaths reported, I understand that one case was in a severely under-nourished child and the other had the condition ‘tracheoesopbageal’. Please could you clarify and indicate their ages, cause of death, and any other details which would be relevant.
Additionally, were both cases admitted into hospital with suspected measles or did they contract measles whilst in hospital for other conditions ?
13. What was the vaccination status for both of these cases (Please include early jabs, also)
There are now 3 deaths:
1 child who acquired measles nosocomially (acquired in hospital) was just 15/12 and had a tracheostomy following repair of a tracheoeosophageal-fistula.
The second child was brought in dead to the hospital during a measles illness at home and measles was confirmed serologically at postmortem. She was not malnourished. She bad a history the previous year of failing to thrive but following monitoring had normal growth velocity and normal growth centiles. She was >15/12 and not vaccinated. (When journalist Peter Hitchen made enquiries on this death to the same health professional, he was told that the victim was a 12 month old baby girl from a very poor family living in grim conditions on a large Dublin-housing estate and was, incredibly for a European capital in the year 2000, malnourished 28/1/01 Mail on Sunday.)
The third child was a healthy 12 month old who was not vaccinated.