United News of Bangladesh

Four children died with measles-like symptoms in the 24 hours until 8:00am on Friday, bringing the country’s combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 894 this year. The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has classified all four latest fatalities as suspected measles deaths, with no confirmed deaths from the disease reported during the period. With this, the total number of suspected measles deaths has reached 795, while confirmed deaths from measles have remained the same at 99. A total of 972 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, bringing the cumulative number of suspected cases nationwide to 141,048. Meanwhile, 187 new confirmed measles cases were recorded, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to 17,730. Since March 15 this year, a total of 122,794 patients with suspected measles have been hospitalised across the country, of whom 118,540 have recovered, according to DGHS data.

Sylhet, Aug 14 (UNB) - Two children died with measles-like symptoms in Sylhet division in the 24 hours until Friday morning, raising the combined measles and suspected measles-related death toll in the division to 133 this year. The two children, aged 17 months and six months, died while undergoing treatment at Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital, according to a report from the Office of the Divisional Director (Health) in Sylhet. Of the 133 deaths recorded so far, six were confirmed to have been caused by measles, while the remaining deaths involved patients who had symptoms of the disease. The Directorate General of Health Services also reported 28 new confirmed measles cases in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the division this year to 942. Meanwhile, 119 people with measles-like symptoms were admitted to hospitals across the division during the same period. Of them, 48 were admitted to Shaheed Shamsuddin Ahmed Hospital, 57 to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital, three to North East Hospital and two to Ragib-Rabeya Medical College Hospital. The remaining patients were admitted to different district and upazila hospitals. Sunamganj has recorded the highest number of deaths in the division, with 55, followed by Sylhet with 48, Habiganj with 17 and Moulvibazar with 13.

Two people died of dengue and 723 new patients were hospitalised across the country in 24 hours until 8:00am on Wednesday. With the latest fatalities, the dengue death toll has risen to 63 in the country this year, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). The new deaths were reported in Khulna and Barishal divisions, it said. Since January 1 this year, a total of 21,550 dengue patients have been admitted to hospitals across the country. Of them, 19,894 have recovered and been discharged, while 1,593 patients are currently undergoing treatment, according to the DGHS.

Five more children died with measles and measles-like symptoms in 24 hours until 8:00am on Wednesday, bringing the country’s combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 885 this year. According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), one was confirmed measles death while the remaining four were classified as suspected deaths. With this, the total number of confirmed deaths from measles has risen to 99 and suspected deaths to 786. A total of 941 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, bringing the cumulative number of suspected cases nationwide to 139,125. Meanwhile, 84 new confirmed measles cases were recorded, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to 17,469. Since March 15 this year, a total of 121,013 patients with suspected measles have been hospitalised across the country, of whom 116,827 have recovered, according to DGHS data.

A new platform, bringing together several organisations of healthcare professionals, styled ‘Jatiya Swasthya Peshajibi Oikya’, was launched on Tuesday. The platform was formally announced at a press conference held at the National Press Club. The platform brings together various healthcare professional organisations, including the Bangladesh Nurses Association, Bangladesh Diploma Nurses Association, Bangladesh Midwifery Society, Bangladesh Diploma Medical Association and Bangladesh Diploma Pharmacists Association. Convener of the ‘Jatiya Swasthya Peshajibi Oikya’ is Jamal Uddin Badsha, while its member secretary is SM Monirul Islam Sadaf. The new platform to raise voice on a number of demands including to upgrade pharmacists, Sub-Assistant Community Medical Officer (SACMO) and medical technologists as 10th grade (2nd class) posts in the health sector and to stop move to abolish the Directorate General of Nursing and Midwifery.

Mentioning that the prevalence of hypertension and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) among Bangladesh’s young population is increasing at an alarming rate, speakers at a webinar on Tuesday underscored the need for effective programmes and sustainable financing to address this growing crisis. The webinar titled “Hypertension Risk Among Youth and the Way Forward: Bangladesh Perspective” was organised by research and advocacy organisation PROGGA (Knowledge for Progress) to mark International Youth Day 2026. The event was supported by the Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI) and co-organised by youth networks, including Bangladesh Medical Students’ Society, Platform Doctors Foundation, It’s Humanity Foundation and Give Bangladesh. According to the Bangladesh NCD STEPS Survey 2018, around 12 percent of people aged 18-39 have hypertension. Speakers warned that without effective measures, the situation could worsen significantly. They also said NCDs, including hypertension, account for 71 percent of all deaths in Bangladesh, with 19 percent of those deaths occurring prematurely. According to the Health and Morbidity Status Survey-2025 of the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), hypertension ranks first among the country’s top 10 diseases. Prof Dr Sohel Reza Choudhury, head of the Department of Epidemiology and Research at the National Heart Foundation Hospital & Research Institute, said sustainable financing is essential to ensure a regular supply of medicines at primary-level healthcare facilities and reduce premature deaths from hypertension. “It can be one of the most worthwhile investments in building a healthy young generation,” he said. Dr Malay Kanti Mridha, professor at BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health, said hypertension can be effectively controlled through evidence-based curative and preventive measures. Muhammad Ruhul Quddus, Bangladesh Country Lead at GHAI, said the increase in the health budget is a positive step and called for a significant share of the additional allocation to be directed towards hypertension and other NCDs. The webinar was presided over by ABM Zubair, executive director of PROGGA, and moderated by Samiha Bintay Kamal, programme officer at PROGGA. Participants from different parts of the country, including representatives of youth organisations and people from diverse professional backgrounds, attended the webinar. International Youth Day will be observed on Wednesday with the theme “Different Contexts, Common Aspirations.”

Five children died with measles-like symptoms in the 24 hours until 8:00am on Monday, bringing the country’s combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 878 this year. The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has classified all five latest fatalities as suspected measles deaths, with no confirmed deaths from the disease reported during the period. With this, the total number of suspected measles deaths has reached 780, while confirmed deaths from measles have remained the same at 98. Six more children die with measles-like symptoms; death toll climbs to 873 A total of 992 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, bringing the cumulative number of suspected cases nationwide to 137,312. Meanwhile, 163 new confirmed measles cases were recorded, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to 17,278. Since March 15 this year, a total of 119,322 patients with suspected measles have been hospitalised across the country, of whom 115,139 have recovered, according to DGHS data.

Six more children died with measles-like symptoms in 24 hours until 8:00am on Sunday, bringing the country’s combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 873 this year. According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), all the latest fatalities were suspected measles deaths. With the latest update, the number of suspected measles deaths has risen to 775 while the number of laboratory-confirmed measles deaths remained unchanged at 98. A total of 988 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, bringing the cumulative number of suspected cases nationwide to 136,320. Meanwhile, 75 new confirmed measles cases were recorded, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to 17,115. Since March 15 this year, a total of 118,382  patients with suspected measles have been hospitalised across the country, of whom 114,142 have recovered, according to DGHS data.

Four more children died with measles and measles-like symptoms in 24 hours until 8:00am on Saturday, bringing the country’s combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 867 this year. According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), two were confirmed as measles-related while the remaining two were classified as suspected deaths. With this, the total number of confirmed deaths from measles has risen to 98 and suspected deaths to 769. A total of 677 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, bringing the cumulative number of suspected cases nationwide to 135,332. Meanwhile, 99 new confirmed measles cases were recorded, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to 17,040. Since March 15 this year, a total of 117,444 patients with suspected measles have been hospitalised across the country, of whom 113,200 have recovered, according to DGHS data.

Three children died with measles-like symptoms in the 24 hours until 8:00am on Friday, bringing the country’s combined tally of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths to 863 this year. According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), all the latest fatalities were suspected measles deaths. With the latest update, the number of suspected measles deaths has risen to 767, while the number of laboratory-confirmed measles deaths remained unchanged at 96. A total of 1,017 new suspected measles cases were reported during the 24-hour period, bringing the cumulative number of suspected cases nationwide to 134,655. Meanwhile, 201 new confirmed measles cases were recorded, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to 16,941. Since March 15 this year, a total of 116,822 patients with suspected measles have been hospitalised across the country, of whom 112,525 have recovered, according to DGHS data.