Measles is surging in Alberta. Which vaccine-preventable disease could be next?

Jennifer Lee · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 16, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

Doctors and scientists interest Alberta's measles outbreaks could awesome the commencement of a caller epoch erstwhile other dangerous infectious diseases of the past could re-emerge and airs caller wellness threats.

The state is battling its worst question of measles cases in astir fractional a period and determination is nary extremity successful sight.

The microorganism was declared eliminated successful Canada successful 1998. But vaccination rates person declined successful Alberta, and around the country in caller years. 

"To immoderate grade measles is the canary successful the coalmine," said Dr. Cora Constantinescu, a pediatric infectious diseases specializer astatine Alberta Children's Hospital successful Calgary.

As of Friday, a full of 879 measles cases had been reported successful the province since the outbreaks began successful March.

"When the immunization rates spell down and you person a batch of unprotected radical successful the communities, usually the archetypal vaccine-preventable illness to travel backmost is measles," said Constantinescu connected a measles occurrence of CBC Radio's Alberta astatine Noon.

It's 1 of the archetypal to re-emerge, experts say, due to the fact that it is truthful highly contagious and requires precise precocious vaccination rates (about 95 per cent) for colonisation level protection.

Provincial information shows successful 2024 just  68.1 per cent of Alberta two-year-olds were up to day with 2 doses of the measles vaccine.

The level of immunization needed for herd immunity varies from 1 illness to another, but vaccination rates for different puerility illnesses are dropping too, sparking fears astir what's next.

"For galore diseases we person present fallen, again, beneath herd immunity," said Craig Jenne, a prof successful the section of microbiology, immunology and infectious diseases astatine the University of Calgary.

"We're getting into the realm wherever diseases that were truly problematic present successful Canada successful the 1950s and 60s — and that done a truly broad and well-co-ordinated vaccination run were mostly eliminated — are coming back."

• Alberta's measles outbreaks are present the worst successful astir fractional a century

It's a large interest for University of Alberta infectious diseases specialist Dr. Lynora Saxinger as well.

"To maine it's a small spot of a reddish emblem successful presumption of what we mightiness beryllium seeing of different diseases of the past. Maybe it won't beryllium truthful overmuch successful the past anymore," she said.

"And that is simply a ample load of unwellness that tin person complications successful a batch of antithetic ways."

Polio concerns

These diseases, portion often forgotten, can be life-changing and adjacent deadly.

"We interest astir seeing resurgence of things similar polio, that we truly person not had for a agelong time," said Dr. Stephanie Smith, an infectious diseases specializer astatine the University of Alberta Hospital.

• Polio mostly vanished acknowledgment to vaccines. So wherefore is it present backmost successful much countries?

• In the 1950s, Canada faced a terrifying epidemic. Here's however it was conquered

Polio is highly infectious and tin infect the tense system. While galore radical person mild flu-like symptoms, oregon nary symptoms astatine all, they tin inactive dispersed the illness.

And successful immoderate cases it tin pb to paralysis and adjacent death.

"We've each seen the historical pictures of radical successful robust lungs to enactment breathing. There's nary crushed wherefore that couldn't hap again if we spot polio re-establish successful the province," said Jenne.

Polio outbreaks spread unfettered crossed the state for decades.

In 1953 — a peculiarly atrocious twelvemonth for the microorganism — determination were 9,000 cases and 500 deaths reported.

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) wide immunization led to a melodramatic driblet successful polio cases successful the 1950s. The past clip chaotic poliovirus was acquired successful Canada was 1977 and the country was declared escaped of the chaotic poliovirus successful 1994.

Alberta's routine puerility immunization docket recommends babies receive doses of the vaccine that protects against polio (IPV) astatine 2 months of age, 4 months, six months and 18 months. An further dose is offered astatine the property of four.

The injections besides protect against diptheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP).

Provincial information shows 75.8 per cent of two-year-olds were up to day with 4 doses of the vaccine successful 2015.

That fig dropped to 68.9 per cent successful 2024.

• Physicians brace for summertime question play arsenic Alberta tops 800 measles cases

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According to Jenne, polio vaccine uptake needs to beryllium astatine slightest 80 to 86 per cent for herd immunity.

In 2024, the north, cardinal and southbound zones had the lowest rates, hovering betwixt 55 and 56 per cent.

In immoderate localized areas the uptake is highly low.

In High Level, for example, 13.4 per cent of two-year-olds had 4 doses of the polio vaccine successful 2024. Two Hills County reported 17.3 per cent and the Municipal District of Taber reported 28.7 per cent.

"[With] polio and each sorts of different vaccine-preventable illnesses, it's concerning that we spot vaccination rates being debased for each of those," said Smith.

Whooping cough outbreaks

Pertussis, which is besides known arsenic whooping cough, has already flared up in  Alberta.

"Whooping cough is precise unsafe for infants nether the property of one," said Jenne.

Pertussis tin pb to superior complications successful young babies including pneumonia, seizures and death. 

Vaccination rates for it person fallen alongside polio.

"One to 4 deaths related to pertussis hap each twelvemonth successful Canada, typically successful infants who are excessively young to beryllium immunized, oregon children who are unimmunized oregon lone partially immunized," the PHAC website states.

There were 894 confirmed cases of pertussis successful Alberta successful 2023, erstwhile outbreaks were declared successful each wellness zones. And outbreaks have since continued.

• Whooping cough hits Okotoks arsenic Alberta outbreaks resistance on

• Whooping cough outbreaks persist successful Alberta arsenic wellness officials impulse vaccination

"It is simply a changing scenery present wherever unluckily the vantage is tipping successful favour of these infectious diseases," said Jenne.

Doctors interest astir mumps and chickenhearted pox arsenic well.

Saxinger said Alberta's wide vaccination rates thin to beryllium little than galore different jurisdictions and she wants radical to cognize these are not conscionable benign puerility illnesses.

"There is genuinely a batch of interest astir the full vaccine-preventable illness front," she said.

"We're not thinking astir radical who had complications on the mode and the load of that successful a community."

And arsenic doctors and scientists ticker Alberta's measles lawsuit counts balloon, that sense of urgency grows.

"We person tools to bring them backmost nether control. It conscionable requires important effort — important co-ordination — and we request the nationalist to measurement up and get those vaccine rates backmost up to the extortion that we had enjoyed for the past 2 oregon 3 decades that truly saw these diseases eradicated from Canada," said Jenne.