Africa has seen the most success, with annual measles deaths falling by 75 percent in just 5 years, from an estimated 506,000 to 126,000.

Last March, the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children's Fund announced an effort to cut measles deaths in half by 2005.

Since mid-2009, more than 200,000 measles cases and at least 1,400 measles deaths have been reported from 28 African countries.

The goal of halving the number of measles deaths was set in 2003 by the members of W.H.O.

Progress in reducing global measles deaths, 1999--2004.

Last year measles infected 500 people in Philadelphia alone, killing 6 children, the first measles deaths in 20 years.

Unicef and the World Health Organization reported that the goal of halving measles deaths worldwide by 2005 has been surpassed.

The new goal, endorsed in 2005 at a W.H.O. assembly in Geneva, is a 90 percent cut in measles deaths by 2010.

Most measles deaths are from encephalitis and pneumonia, occasional consequences of the disease; the usual victims are infants and toddlers.

Under-five mortality fell from 13,500,000 in 1985 to 12,900,000 in 1990, principally due to a reduction in measles deaths, from some 2,000,000 to 880,000.