(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
WHO Denounces 'Collective Failure' as Measles Kills 140,000
Measles infected nearly 10 million people in 2018 and killed 140,000, mostly children, the World Health Organization (WHO) said this week.
The viral disease affected every part of the world, the WHO said. It added that most of the measles deaths were in children under five who had not been vaccinated.
"The fact that any child dies from a vaccine-preventable disease like measles is (an) ... outrage and a collective failure to protect the world's...children," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreysus. He is director general of the United Nations' public health agency.
The situation in 2019 is even worse, the WHO said. Reporting up to November shows a 200 percent increase in measles cases compared with the same period in 2018.
This year, the United States has already reported its highest number of measles cases in 25 years. Four countries in Europe — Albania, the Czech Republic, Greece and Britain — are no longer "measles-free" after suffering large outbreaks of the disease.
An outbreak in the South Pacific nation of Samoa has infected more than 4,200 people. There the disease has killed more than 60, mostly babies and children. Officials in Samoa are fighting an anti-vaccination movement.
In 2018, measles hit hardest in Liberia, Ukraine, Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar and Somalia, the WHO said. These five nations were reported to have made up nearly half of all cases worldwide.
Around the world, measles vaccination rates have not increased for almost 10 years. In 2018, around 86 percent of children got a first dose of measles vaccine through normal vaccination plans. Fewer than 70 percent got the second dose they need to be fully protected. That information comes from WHO officials and UNICEF, the United Nations Childrens' Fund.
Heidi Larson is director of the Vaccine Confidence Project at Britain's London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.
"Some countries are scrambling to vaccinate in the face of serious outbreaks — far too late for many," she said.
Measles is one of the most contagious known diseases, more so than Ebola, tuberculosis or influenza. It can stay in the air for several hours after an infected person is no longer present, putting anyone not vaccinated at risk.
In wealthier nations, some adults refuse to get their children vaccinated for what they say are religious or moral reasons. Distrust of government officials and unconfirmed reports linking vaccines to autism have weakened public trust in the vaccine. As a result, some parents delay protecting their children.
Research published in October showed that measles infection carries a risk of death or serious problems like brain damage, blindness and deafness. It can also damage the victim's natural defenses against disease for months or years. Those who survive measles can easily catch other diseases.
The WHO report showed there were an estimated 9,769,400 cases of measles and 142,300 related deaths around the world in 2018. This compares to 7,585,900 cases and 124,000 deaths in 2017.
Charlie Weller, head of vaccines at the Wellcome Trust aid group, said the number of deaths is a tragedy. "If we are to protect lives, we must understand...the reasons why measles vaccine (use) is lower," she said.
I'm Jill Robbins.
重点解析
重点讲解：
1. die from 死于；
Forty-thousand children a day die from preventable diseases.
每天有4万个孩子死于本可以预防的疾病。
2. no longer 不再；已不；
After about three months, I was no longer addicted to nicotine.
大约3个月后，我就不再对尼古丁上瘾了。
3. scramble to do sth. 争抢；抢占；争夺；
Shoppers were scrambling to get the best bargains.
顾客争先恐后地抢购最便宜的特价商品。
4. in the face of 面对；在…面前；
They are still temporizing in the face of what can only be described as a disaster.
面临着显而易见的灾难，他们还在拖延时间。
参考译文
麻疹致死14万人 世卫组织斥“集体失败”
世界卫生组织（简称WHO）本周表示，2018年近1000万人感染麻疹，导致14万人死亡。
世卫组织表示，这一病毒性疾病影响了世界各地。该组织还指出，大多数麻疹死亡病例为5岁以下未接种疫苗的儿童。
泰特罗斯·阿迪安诺·格布雷苏斯说：“任何儿童死于麻疹等疫苗可预防疾病都令人愤怒，这是保护全世界儿童的集体失败。”他是联合国公共卫生机构世卫组织的总干事。
世卫组织称，2019年的情况更加糟糕。截至11月的报告显示，麻疹病例较2018年同期增长了200%。
今年以来，美国已经报告了25年来最多的麻疹病例。四个欧洲国家，即阿尔巴尼亚、捷克共和国、希腊和英国爆发了大规模麻疹疫情，不再列入麻疹绝迹国。
南太平洋岛国萨摩亚的麻疹疫情已致超过4200人感染。该国目前已有60余人死于麻疹，其中大多数是婴儿和儿童。萨摩亚官员正在对抗反疫苗运动。
世卫组织表示，2018年全球麻疹疫情最严重的国家包括利比亚、乌克兰、刚果民主共和国、马达加斯加和索马里。据报告，这五个国家的病例占全球总数的近一半。
全球范围内，麻疹疫苗接种率近10年没有增加。2018年，约86%的儿童通过常规疫苗计划接种了第一剂麻疹疫苗。不到70%的人接种了全面保护所需的第二剂疫苗。这一数据来自世卫组织官员和联合国儿童基金会（简称UNICEF）。
海蒂·拉森是英国伦敦卫生与热带医学学院疫苗信心项目的主任。
她说：“有些国家在面临严重疫情时才匆忙接种疫苗，对许多人来说这为时已晚。”
麻疹是已知传染性最强的疾病之一，其传染性强于埃博拉、肺结核或流感。受感染者离开后，该病毒可以在空气中停留数个小时，使没有接种疫苗者陷入危险。
在较富裕国家，有些成年人因宗教或道德原因拒绝给孩子接种疫苗。对政府官员的不信任以及将疫苗与自闭症相联系的未经证实报道削弱了公众对疫苗的信任。结果，一些家长推迟了对孩子的保护。
10月发表的研究显示，麻疹感染可能导致死亡或其他严重问题，比如脑损伤、失明和失聪。麻疹感染还可能使受害者的自然防御能力遭受数月或数年的损伤。麻疹幸存者很容易感染其他疾病。
世卫组织的报告显示，据估计，2018年全球有9,769,400例麻疹病例，142,300例相关死亡病例。而2017年有7,585,900例病例和 124,000例死亡。
援助组织维康信托基金会的查理·韦勒表示，死亡人数是个悲剧。她说：“如果我们想保护生命，那我们就必须了解麻疹疫苗接种率下降的原因。”
吉尔·罗宾斯报道。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
