Abstract:

Introduction: Measles is the main cause of childhood morbidity and mortality and highly prevalent worldwide. Over the last 15 years there has been a general decline in all the reported Vaccine Preventable Diseases in India but the decline in measles incidence is far below the expected level. WHO targets measles next to polio for eradication.

Objectives: 1) To determine the immunization coverage in measles in Kanyakumari district and 2) To identify the factors associated with Drop outs.

Methodology: This is a community based cross sectional study conducted in whole Kanyakumari district in Tamilnadu, India from June 2012 to May 2013 with 210 children in the age group between 12 and 23 completed months selected by 30 x 7 cluster sampling method. Structured pre tested Questionnaire was used to collect data. 

Results:  Mean age of the children was 18.1 ± 3.1 (SD) months. Out of 210 children, 171 children (81.4%) were immunized for measles vaccination. 64.9% vaccinated in Government facility and  35.1% of children in private setup. Forgetfulness due to longer timegap between OPV/DPT 3^rd Dose and Measles vaccine was the most common factor for drop out constituting 25.6%.  Area of Residence, Marital Status of the parents, Total Income, Distance and the Availability of Immunisation card are the significantly associated with Dropouts. 

Conclusion: The prevalence of dropout is 18.6%. Forgetfulness, Area of residence, Marital status and Income of parents, Distance, Availability of immunization card were the significant factors associated with Drop outs.

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