SUMMARY

Kabra SK, Lodha R, Hilton DJ

Antibiotics for preventing complications in children with measles

Measles is an infectious disease caused by a virus. There is an effective vaccine that can prevent measles, however 30 to 40 million people annually still develop measles worldwide. Each year measles causes more than half a million deaths and is responsible for an estimated 44% of the 1.7 million vaccine-preventable deaths among children. Measles is associated with complications such as pneumonia, ear infections, throat infections, diarrhea and conjunctivitis. Currently, the administration of two doses of vitamin A is recommended for the prevention of these complications in children below two years of age. Another method to prevent post-measles complications is to give antibiotics to children. The objective of this review was to assess the effects of antibiotics given to children with measles in reducing pneumonia, other morbidities and mortality. A review of seven controlled clinical trials which included 1385 children, showed that children with measles who were given antibiotics had a lower incidence of pneumonia, ear infections and tonsillitis. However, there were no benefits for conjunctivitis or gastroenteritis.

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