Ontario has watched its measles count nearly double in a matter of weeks, with 78 new cases reported over two weeks and more than a hundred confirmed this year, a figure that has already outpaced the entire decade from 2013 to 2023. Most of these infections trace back to an interprovincial outbreak that began in the autumn and has since crossed into New Brunswick and Manitoba, while Quebec tends its own smaller cluster. Children, particularly those who have not been vaccinated, are bearing the weight of it, with eighteen hospitalized and one in intensive care. It is a reminder that a disease l
Ontario Measles Cases Nearly Double as Interprovincial Outbreak Surpasses Decade-Long Provincial Total
18 children have been hospitalized, one requiring intensive care, mostly unvaccinated children and teenagers.
A single stretch of weeks has now outweighed a decade of cases.
Mark
Seventy-eight cases in two weeks. Why is that number landing so hard?
Mimi
Because it nearly doubles the outbreak's count since autumn. And Ontario's 119 confirmed cases this year already exceed the 101 recorded from 2013 to 2023.
Luke
Careful with the comparison, though. That 101 is infections over ten years. The 119 is lab-confirmed only, and there are 23 more probable ones. The scale is real, but the two numbers cover very different periods.
Mark
And the outbreak itself, how big is it?
Mimi
It began in October and has sickened 177 people in Ontario. It also spread to New Brunswick and Manitoba. Quebec has a separate outbreak of 27 cases.
Mark
Who is getting sick?
Mimi
Mostly unvaccinated children and teenagers. Eighteen kids have been hospitalized, one in intensive care.
Luke
Worth noting the report says primarily, not exclusively. And it doesn't give vaccination counts for the 18 hospitalized, so I wouldn't read more into it than that.
Mark
Why is this happening now?
Mimi
The Public Health Agency of Canada points to a global rise in measles, lower vaccination rates and more international travel. One Thursday case was a child who caught it abroad.
Luke
That's the agency's explanation. The report doesn't say how much each factor contributes, and we don't know how the 78 new cases split between the travel and local spread.
Mark
And the Texas death?
Mimi
An unvaccinated child died, the first US measles death in a decade. It shows what the disease can do, though it's a separate situation from Ontario's.
Le Pouls
- Seventy-eight new cases in just two weeks have nearly doubled Ontario's count since the autumn outbreak began.
- This year's total of 119 confirmed and 23 probable cases already exceeds everything recorded in Ontario from 2013 to 2023.
- The virus is spreading across provincial lines, reaching New Brunswick and Manitoba while Quebec fights a separate 27-case outbreak.
- Eighteen children have landed in hospital, one in intensive care, most of them unvaccinated teenagers and young kids.
- Public health officials are pressing vaccination as the main shield, while watching whether this two-week surge keeps climbing.
Ontario has watched its measles count nearly double in a matter of weeks, with 78 new cases reported over two weeks and more than a hundred confirmed this year, a figure that has already outpaced the entire decade from 2013 to 2023. Most of these infections trace back to an interprovincial outbreak that began in the autumn and has since crossed into New Brunswick and Manitoba, while Quebec tends its own smaller cluster. Children, particularly those who have not been vaccinated, are bearing the weight of it, with eighteen hospitalized and one in intensive care. It is a reminder that a disease long considered controlled can return quickly when protection thins and people move more freely across borders.
Ontario has added 78 new measles cases over the past two weeks, a surge that has nearly doubled the province's count since an outbreak began last autumn. Reported on Thursday, February 27, 2025, the figures mark a sharp turn: this year's tally now stands at 119 laboratory-confirmed cases plus 23 probable ones, already surpassing the 101 infections recorded across the entire province between 2013 and 2023.
Most of the recent infections link back to an interprovincial outbreak that started in October. It has sickened 177 people in Ontario alone and has also reached New Brunswick and Manitoba. Quebec has its own separate outbreak of 27 cases, which began in December.
The heaviest burden falls on young people. Eighteen children have been hospitalized, and one needed intensive care. Most of those affected are unvaccinated children and teenagers, and among Thursday's reports was a child who caught the virus abroad and required hospital care.
The Public Health Agency of Canada points to a global rise in measles, lower vaccination rates and increased travel as drivers of the spread, and maintains that vaccination remains the best protection. The coming weeks will show whether the two-week pace holds and whether outbreaks in Quebec and the Atlantic and Prairie provinces grow alongside Ontario's.
Ontario added 78 new measles cases over the past two weeks, a jump that has nearly doubled the province's count since an outbreak began in the autumn. The figures were reported Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025.
The new cases bring this year's total in Ontario to 119 that have been confirmed in a laboratory, plus 23 more classed as probable. Together, that already goes past the 101 infections recorded across the whole province between 2013 and 2023. A single stretch of weeks has now outweighed a decade of cases.
Almost all of the recent cases trace back to an interprovincial outbreak that started in October. In Ontario alone it has sickened 177 people. The virus has also spread in New Brunswick and Manitoba. Quebec, separately, has reported its own outbreak of 27 cases that began in December.
The cost is falling heavily on young people. Eighteen children have been hospitalized because of the outbreak, and one of them needed intensive care. The disease has primarily infected children and teenagers who are unvaccinated. Among the cases reported Thursday was an unvaccinated child who caught measles outside Canada and had to be hospitalized.
The situation across the border is moving in the same direction. The United States recorded its first measles death in a decade on Wednesday, when an unvaccinated child died in Texas.
Measles is airborne and highly contagious, yet preventable. It usually starts with a fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes. A red blotchy rash follows, beginning on the face and spreading to the body and limbs. The virus can lead to pneumonia, inflammation of the brain, and death.
The Public Health Agency of Canada attributes the current spread to a global rise in measles, reduced vaccination rates and increased international travel. The agency says vaccination is the best protection.
What to watch next is whether the two-week pace holds, and whether the outbreaks in Quebec and the Atlantic and Prairie provinces continue to grow alongside Ontario's.
Citations marquantes
Vaccination is the best path of protection, and the spread is due to a global rise in measles, reduced vaccination rates and increased international travel.— Public Health Agency of Canada (paraphrased)
Envie de l'histoire complète ?
Lire l'original sur ElliotLakeToday.com ↗
Health & Medicine