In addition, the statistics do not count people who use indigenous medicine, obtain private health care or fail to seek any treatment. And cases are not reported at all from the northern and eastern provinces because of the war against Tamil separatists. Other medical workers told the WSWS that lack of funds and official indifference are preventing accurate reporting of death rates where patients die from complications linked to measles. Nearly 2,000 measles cases have been reported from the capital, Colombo, which is the most densely populated region, where many live without basic sanitary facilities. Since measles is a highly contagious disease, spreading by droplets from person to person, most cases have emerged from overcrowded shanties, slums, lodges and dormitory-style rooms that lack proper sanitation and ventilation.
Measles can cause death and severe disability.
Among children who survive, the results include blindness, deafness, brain and lung damage, and stunted growth and development. In Sri Lanka, however, about 35,000 babies are born annually who are not vaccinated. This represents 10 percent of births, pediatrician Dr. Sujeeva Amarasena said at a recent public lecture. Moreover, the national average figures mask the even lower rates in poorer regions. A recent Epidemiological Unit survey revealed that the vaccination coverage in the Colombo urban area is just 84 percent.