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Published : 16 Jun 2026, 01:19 PM
Holy Family Red Crescent Medical College (HFRCMC) has launched Bangladesh's first institutional measles treatment guideline, aimed at standardising diagnosis and care within the facility.
The guideline was formally launched at a ceremony held at the college auditorium on Tuesday morning, according to a media statement.
The private medical college says the guideline is drawn up to standardise and coordinate measles treatment management, and the institution will follow it in treating the disease.
The guideline carries several key warnings: corticosteroids must not be used in measles-related pneumonia, steroid drops must not be used for eye complications, and dextrose saline alone is prohibited in cases of severe dehydration.
It notes that such treatment errors have caused patient deaths in the past.
Associate Professor of Medicine Dr Sayem Mohammad delivered the keynote on the guideline at the event.
He said the 50-page document comprises 14 clinical modules and was edited by Dr Farhana Haque and himself.
Measles outbreaks began emerging in Bangladesh from the start of this year, spreading across the country from late February.
The Directorate General of Health Services began tracking data from Mar 15.
Since then, 656 people have died from measles or measles-like symptoms -- the deadliest outbreak the country has seen in 20 years.
According to the World Health Organization, more than 25,000 children were infected in 2005.
The event claimed no hospital or medical institution in Bangladesh had previously had a standardised, evidence-based treatment protocol for managing measles and its complications.
The guideline's lead editors, Dr Farhana and Dr Sayem, called on the government to adopt it as the national measles treatment protocol.
They also called for isolation rooms and infection control standards to be made mandatory in hospital accreditation processes.
The ceremony was presided over by HFRCMC Principal Prof KM Mozibul Haque.
Those present included Health Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain, Doctors Association of Bangladesh (DAB) President Harun-ur-Rashid, DAB Secretary General Zahirul Islam Shakil, HFRCMC Acting Director Shahin Rahman Chowdhury, and college Vice-Principal Prof Meherun Nessa.
