OBJECTIVE:

To investigate the seroprevalence of antibodies against measles in young adults living in Belém and Ananindeua, Pará State, Brazil, in order to identify susceptible individuals.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Cross-sectional study by conglomerate, from 2,220 individuals (1,109 from Belém and 1,111 from Ananindeua), aged between 15 to 39 years old, being volunteers from schools, colleges, universities, research institutes, and barracks. Data were collected through an epidemiological questionnaire and entered using Epi-Info™ v7.0. The binomial test was used to analyze two proportions using BioEstat v5.3, significance level p < 0.05.

RESULTS:

The general susceptibility to measles was 17.2%, with 16.4% in Belém and 18.0% in Ananindeua, which was higher in males, with a wide geographical distribution. There was a significant difference in seropositivity in relation to the types of vaccine administered, with the triple viral vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella) reaching the highest percentages, as well as the comparison of information between self-reported and proven ones. Number of doses did not show significance in soropositivity when comparing individuals who referred one dose and the ones reporting three doses of measles vaccine. A decline in antibody levels over time (20 years) after the last vaccination was detected.

CONCLUSION:

There are groups of susceptible people forming pockets of vulnerable people in both municipalities, highlighting the need to strengthen epidemiological surveillance and vaccination strategies, in view of the reintroduction of the virus, in order to control the disease in Brazil.

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