• Amandine Bichon, Camille Aubry, Lucas Benarous, Hortense Drouet, Christine Zandotti, Philippe Parola, and Jean-Christophe Lagier.
• Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS 7278, IRD 198, INSERM 1095, AP-HM, URMITE, IHU Méditerranée-Infection, 19-21 Boulevard Jean Moulin, Marseille Cedex 5 Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Marseille, CHU Timone, Service de réanimation médicale, Marseille, France.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2017 Dec 1; 96 (50): e9154e9154.

RationaleDespite a vaccine being widely available, measles continues to occur frequently, with sometimes lethal consequences.Patients ConcernsThe mortality rate reaches 35% and measles represents 44% of the 1.4 million deaths which are due to preventable diseases. Severe forms of measles are reported, mainly in young, unvaccinated adults, and in specific populations. The risk factors for severe measles include no or incomplete vaccination and vitamin A deficiency. Apart from secondary measles-related infections, severe measles is mainly represented by neurological, respiratory, and digestive symptoms.DiagnosesStrengthening the hypothesis that there is a link between vitamin A deficiency and severe measles in this paper we report the case of a 25-year-old unvaccinated man hospitalized for severe and complicated measles.OutcomesThe evolution was good after administration of intramuscular vitamin A as well as intravenous ribavirin.LessonsMeasles remains a fatal and serious disease. The early use of ribavirin and vitamin A shows significant improvements regarding morbimortality and should be systematic in severe cases.Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

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