Ukraine declares measles outbreak, 883 people infected

The Ukrainian Health Ministry on Monday declared an outbreak of measles, with 883 cases of the infectious disease so far reported. "It is still too early to talk about the epidemic, but we have recorded outbreaks of measles in some regions of Ukraine," said Sergey Platov, chief expert of the ministry's Public Health and Epidemiological Welfare Department. Platov told a press conference here alerts had been issued in the country's western and central regions and in Kiev, Ukraine's capital. The expert also urged people to be vaccinated against the disease immediately. Measles is not usually life-threatening but can cause complications in people with weak immune systems and in pregnant women.