Predicting changing measles epidemiology in an urban West African population

Background: Measles remains a major cause of childhood morbidity and mortality. Control of measles is complicated by pattern of measles transmission in which children are infected after they lose their protection from maternal measles antibodies (MMAs). As such, infants become measles prone before the age of measles immunization. This study, therefore, aimed at predicting changing epidemiology of measles in children in Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: One hundred and thirty six infants at the age of seven months were enrolled in this study using the stratified random sampling method, and were tested for MMAs using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: Sixty nine (50.7%) of the infants were males and 67 (49.3%) females, giving an approximate male to female ratio of 1.03:1. Comparing mean MMA levels of infants, for those who were protective and those who were unprotective was significant (P<0.0001). Most of the infants (125, 91.9%) had unprotective MMAs at seven months of age. Conclusion: Majority of infants in this study had unprotective MMAs at seven months of age and are more susceptible to measles. There is the need to monitor similar trend of events in other parts of Nigeria and abroad in order to report changing ecology of measles.