Cameroon launches vaccination campaign to tackle measles, rubella outbreak

YAOUNDE, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Cameroon on Wednesday launched a five-day vaccination campaign targeting children amid an outbreak of measles and rubella.

Out of Cameroon's 200 health districts, 99 have reported cases of measles affecting children below 10 years old, said Shalom Ndoula, permanent secretary of Expanded Immunization Program in the Ministry of Public Health.

"In Cameroon the disease has affected more than 4,000 children with 18 deaths so far and that is a worrying situation," Ndoula told reporters in the capital city of Yaounde.

"It is a nationwide campaign, but the targeted children are children from nine months to five years that are the most affected by the measles outbreak." he added.

According to the program, about 5.5 million children will be vaccinated in Cameroon.

Signs and symptoms of the disease include fever, rash, cough, red eyes and runny nose, said officials, warning that measles complications are severe in malnourished children and infants under two years of age.