Ontario reports first measles-related death in child after more than a decade

For the first time in more than a decade, a child has died after contracting measles.

In a summary report updated yesterday, Public Health Ontario says 22 cases have been seen in Ontario so far this year — 13 of them in children.

Of those 13 cases, 12 of them were reportedly not immunized, and five were ultimately hospitalized.

One of the children, a child under five, died as a result.

The health agency says most of the cases were associated with travel, while two were linked to close contact with an infected person.

The report spans back to 2013 and is updated on a weekly basis. In that time, there were 101 confirmed cases across the province. The majority of which were accounts of individuals who were not vaccinated against the virus, or did not know their immunization status.

In Canada, measles is prevented by vaccination. The first of which is administered after a child’s first birthday — between 12 to 15 months. A second dose typically follows at anytime after 18 months, but before the child enters school.

Two doses provide life-long immunity in most people.

READ MORE: 8 confirmed cases of measles in Ontario, at least 1 in Hamilton