A case of measles has been detected at a child health center in Stockholm. The infected person had been abroad, according to Region Stockholm's infection control doctor Maria Rotzén Östlund. Health authorities are conducting contact tracing to identify those who may have been infected.
Measles has been considered eliminated in Sweden since 2022, and Swedes are believed to have herd immunity against the disease. Östlund stated that a single case in Sweden is not particularly remarkable, as a low but varying number of people fall ill each year, typically after traveling abroad or contact with someone who has been abroad. Last year, a measles outbreak in Texas, USA, saw about 700 cases and two child deaths, attributed to decreased vaccination rates among children in the state.
a single case in Sweden is not particularly remarkable, as a low but varying number of people fall ill each year, typically after traveling abroad or contact with someone who has been abroad
Östlund noted that a similar trend of vaccine hesitancy affecting future measles outbreaks in Sweden is unlikely, with only a small fraction possibly involved.
a similar trend of vaccine hesitancy affecting future measles outbreaks in Sweden is unlikely, with only a small fraction possibly involved