With his health deteriorating, nine-month-old Amir Hamza cries in his mother’s arms while receiving treatment at the capital’s Infectious Diseases Hospital. His mother, Farida Akhter, tries every possible way to comfort him.
“At first, he had pneumonia and a fever. We stayed in the hospital for a week. After going home, his fever returned within a week,” the anxious mother said.
She said his condition worsened quickly. “He developed a cold and cough with a runny nose, and his body and eyes became swollen. Then rashes appeared due to the high fever, and he had convulsions. His neck became stiff, and his hands and legs were shaking.”
Farida said they rushed him to different hospitals at night but could not find a bed. Later, she brought him to the Infectious Diseases Hospital, where he was admitted.
“Now he seems a little better, but the fever is still there, and he still has a bad cough,” she said.
Hamza’s condition shows how quickly the illness can worsen in young children and how difficult timely access to care can be. Doctors at the hospital are seeing a similar pattern among many other patients, with rising admissions and serious complications.
FA Asma Khan, deputy director of the hospital, told TIMES of Bangladesh on Monday that 101 patients are currently admitted, including 60 with measles.
She said one suspected measles patient and one chickenpox patient died on Sunday night. Most patients are stable and receiving symptomatic treatment while test results are pending, so care is initially based on symptoms.
She added that five patients are in the ICU and that the hospital is slightly over capacity, with 101 patients in a 100-bed facility. So far, 28 children have died from suspected measles, including one in the last 24 hours.
She said measles usually starts with fever, cough, cold, red eyes and rashes, and can develop into pneumonia, which is dangerous for children. She urged parents to avoid seeking treatment from local drug sellers and to take children to hospital quickly for proper care and isolation.
An on-the-spot visit to Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute revealed a tense and sombre scene unfolding inside the measles ward. At noon on Monday, a one-year-old child who had been receiving treatment in the ICU for several days died. Grief and anxiety were visible across the ward.
Several children remain admitted, many of them on oxygen support. In the past 24 hours alone, 12 new patients have been hospitalised. Doctors say a growing number of children are arriving not only with measles, but also with complications such as pneumonia, diarrhoea and eye infections. An alarming number of affected infants are under six months old.
At the specialised measles ward of Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute, there are 44 beds. The ward also has a 16-bed intensive care unit. In total, 60 beds are designated for children infected with measles. No beds are currently available.
A duty doctor said that declining natural immunity among children is contributing to the rise in infections and urged parents to ensure timely vaccination and follow basic health precautions. Meanwhile, hospitals are also admitting children to single cabins and isolation wards, as some cases are too critical to be referred elsewhere. Physicians added that delays in treatment during transfer could worsen outcomes, leaving no option but to admit them immediately.
In the last 24 hours, two more measles deaths were confirmed and five others were suspected, according to the Health Emergency Operation Centre of the Directorate General of Health Services.
During the same period, 1,282 new suspected cases were reported nationwide and 180 were confirmed through laboratory tests. Since 15 March, the country has recorded 1,099 confirmed cases, 8,534 suspected cases, 20 confirmed deaths and 118 suspected deaths.
Dhaka division remains the worst affected, with 3,652 suspected cases, including 611 confirmed ones. Officials say 6,016 patients have recovered so far, while surveillance and monitoring continue.
The government has been running a measles vaccination campaign since Sunday, covering 30 upazilas in 18 high-risk districts so far. The programme will be expanded in phases.
Vaccination is set to begin in city corporations and selected districts on 12 April, followed by a nationwide rollout that will also include vitamin A supplementation from 3 May.
The campaign targets all children aged between six months and under five years, with a goal of vaccinating 1.2 million children in the first phase.
Isolation wards have been set up in all government hospitals across the country. In Rajshahi, an additional 250 isolation beds are being prepared. Along with ICU and ventilator readiness, a newly developed oxygen flow system invented by icddr,b and costing only Tk300 is being used to provide oxygen support to the lungs.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Hossain said in parliament on Monday that isolation wards have been set up in all government hospitals across the country. In Rajshahi, an additional 250 isolation beds are being prepared. Along with ICU and ventilator readiness, a newly developed oxygen flow system by icddr,b, costing only Tk300, is being used to provide oxygen support to the lungs.
