According to WHO, diphtheria is “rapidly spreading among Rohingya refugees
in Cox’s Bazar.” On 6 December, WHO warned that more than 110 suspected cases,
including 6 deaths, have been clinically diagnosed by health partners, including
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and the International Federation of the Red Cross
(IFRC). Diphtheria is a highly infectious respiratory disease that spreads through
droplet and can be deadly, particularly in overcrowded areas with no proper sanitation
system. WHO is working with the Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
(MoHFW), UNICEF, and partners to contain the spread of the highly infectious
respiratory disease through effective treatment and adequate prevention.
For its part, UNHCR immediately made part of the Rubber Plantation Transit
Centre available to serve as a treatment and isolation facility for patients under
MSF management. Sixty-eight patients were transferred on 9 December 2017. The
outbreak has impacted the upcoming relocation of some 10,000 refugees currently in
border areas in Bandarban district; their relocation will be delayed to allow for the
vaccination of children.
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20 Dec 2017 (9 days ago)
Bangladesh