FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH MEASLES COMPLICATIONS IN GWERU, ZIMBABWE

Abstract

Objective: To investigate factors associated with complications or death among measles cases.
Design: A cross-sectional study.
Setting: Health facilities in the city of Gweru, Zimbabwe.
Subjects: Six hundred and thirty seven measles cases randomly selected from measles
surveillance data.
Main outcome measures: (a) Associations of respiratory complications and diarrhoea with
death among complicated cases; (b) associations of age at infection, gender of cases and
vaccination status of cases with occurrence of either respiratory complications or diarrhoea
or death among measles cases.
Results: Among cases with respiratory complications, twenty two (29%) had died, while five
(5%)had died among those with diarrhoea (OR=7.06,95% CI=2.55-22.35, p<0.001). On rates
of respiratory complications among cases, age groups 24-59 and 60+ months were protective
by 57% (95% CI=ll-79%) and 76% (95% CI=52-88%) respectively compared to the age
group <24 months, and vaccination was protective by 42% (95% CI=2-65%) compared to
those unvaccinated. Concerning rates of diarrhoea among cases, the age group 60+ months
was protective by 80% (95% CI=62-89%) compared to age group <60 months, while
vaccination was protective by 64% (95% CI=42-77%) compared to those unvaccinated. With
respect to rates of mortality among cases, age was protective by six per cent (95% CI=3-9%)
for every year older.
Conclusion: It was concluded that: (a) the risk of death was higher in cases with respiratory
complications than diarrhoea; (b) the risk of complications and death was inversely related to
age at infection and older age groups were protective against occurrence of complications or
death; (c) the risk of complications was higher in unvaccinated cases and vaccination was
protective against occurrence of complications.