Source: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23478663-details/Schools+put+on+alert+in+new+measles+outbreak/article.do
Schools put on alert in new measles outbreak
Sophie Goodchild, Health Editor
16.04.08
An outbreak of measles among children has sparked fears that it could spread across the capital.
Health officials are investigating 82 cases in south London, 74 of them in children.
Hospital staff have been screened and immunised after patients on a ward started showing symptoms.
Schools are on alert and parents are being advised to have their children immunised as soon as possible.
The outbreak, in Lewisham, is the second in London in five months. In November 12 children went down with the virus in Barnet. In Hackney, nearly 300 have been infected since an outbreak last June.
Dr Chris Watts, director of public health at Lewisham primary care trust, said: "We have a major problem with measles in Lewisham. We must stop measles spreading."
The number of confirmed and suspected cases in the borough now stands at 74 children - 24 of them aged under five - and eight adults.
University Hospital Lewisham has been affected. An infected patient spread the bug on the children's ward, leaving nine people with the illness.
Mothers are being urged to make sure their children are vaccinated against measles, which can cause meningitis, pneumonia and liver infection.
Experts are blaming the outbreak on scares about the safety of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which has led to parents shunning the jab.
The virus spreads rapidly unless at
least 95 per cent of children in a community have been protected via vaccination.
But London has one of the worst take-up rates for MMR - in some parts the rate is well below 95 per cent - and there are dramatic differences across the capital. In Lewisham only 64 per cent of children have been vaccinated.
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Many parents refused to have their children immunised after a study linked the vaccine to autism. The research was carried out by Dr Andrew Wakefield, who is currently facing disciplinary proceedings at the General Medical Council.
His findings have been widely rejected by scientists, and the latest research has concluded that the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is safe.
Take-up of the jab is beginning to rise again.
Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/healthmain.html?in_article_id=567206&in_page_id=1774#pageTop
Thousands of children to get a DOUBLE jab of MMR in 'emergency' move to tackle measles epidemic
By BEEZY MARSH - Last updated at 01:14am on 19th May 2008
Thousands of babies and toddlers are being given two doses of the MMR jab in three months under "emergency" measures to tackle the biggest outbreak of measles for decades.
The unprecedented step follows a growing epidemic of the potentially fatal disease caused after too few children were given MMR injections.
Around 40 per cent of parents in some areas are shunning MMR, which has faced controversy over suspected links to autism and bowel disease.
In South-East London, doctors have seen a record 226 cases in the first five months of the year - compared with 167 in the area during the whole of 2007.
Experts fear last year's record of 1,000 infections nationally is certain to be broken, putting children's health at risk.
Government advisers from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation warn the epidemic could spread across the UK and urgent measures are needed to halt the disease in its tracks.
Minutes from its last meeting said: "The committee expressed its concern about the ongoing measles epidemic in London, and noted that other parts of the country may be vulnerable to similar outbreaks."
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Two doses of MMR close together have been shown to boost protection to almost 100 per cent. But children whose parents shun the jab are still vulnerable.
Campaigners fear that giving two doses of the triple vaccine over a short period could "overload" infants' immune systems.
But medical experts dismiss this. MMR contains live viruses to provoke an immune response against measles, mumps and rubella.
GPs normally give the first dose at around 14 months and the second before children start school, at around four.
The second dose is needed because 10 per cent of children fail to get immunity to measles from the first. The second dose should "mop up" all but one per cent of them.
There were fears that MMR could cause a form of autism and bowel disease. But this has been rejected by respected scientists, Government experts and all the Royal Colleges.
However, concerns persist and experts say these have combined with a traditionally low uptake among itinerant and some religious communities, which has allowed the disease to flourish in the capital.
Doctors say the emergency vaccination measure follows Government scientific advice on boosting immunity and is needed to prevent children suffering serious complications.
These can include pneumonia, ear infections and, in rare cases, nerve damage which is invariably fatal later in life.
Sufferers are mostly children under five.
Dr Rachel Heathcock, consultant in communicable disease control for the Government's Health Protection Agency, said: "MMR vaccination uptake is not high enough to prevent measles cases.
"We are encouraging parents in South East London to give the second MMR three months after the first dose to protect their children. We are trying to cover tens of thousands of young children.
"If measles spreads then this measure could be introduced more widely and nationally.
"Measles is a very infectious disease and it spreads quickly.
"It started in North London last year and then came to Lewisham. It has spread next door to Lambeth and Southwark. The hotspot seems to be London, but people travel and if someone picks it up here they could take it elsewhere.
"Children's immune systems have a huge capacity. Overloading them with the vaccination is not an issue."
The number of measles cases in England and Wales hit 971 last year, the highest since records began in 1995. Around 300 were in North London.
At least 95 per cent of children need to have the MMR to create a "herd immunity" that stops the disease spreading.
But latest official figures show only 83 per cent of two-year-olds nationally have the first dose of MMR.
In London the figure is 71 per cent and in Lewisham, South London, only 58 per cent have the jab.
At five, nearly 87 per cent of children nationally have had their first dose of MMR and 73 per cent have had the second.
But in London, just 50 per cent have the second dose. In Newham, East London, and Islington, North London, under a third have it.
Vaccination rates are also low elsewhere, such as 79 per cent in Knowsley, Merseyside.
The Government has refused to make single measles vaccines available as an alternative for worried parents.
Dr Richard Halvorsen, who runs the Babyjabs clinic for single and low combinations of childhood immunisations, said: "It is a matter of concern to give so many live vaccines to babies so close together.
"It might be better to separate live vaccines and have a gap of at least several months.
"I am sure it is safe for the majority of children but a small group could be vulnerable. I believe MMR might cause autism in this small group."
Jackie Fletcher, of Justice Action Basic Support, for vaccine-damaged children, said: "If single jabs had been made widely available we would not see a situation of such low vaccination rates and spreading measles. It is a worry that doctors want to give two doses of MMR so close together."
• Measles is one of the most unpleasant and dangerous childhood diseases.
It is highly infectious and symptoms may not appear until several days after a child has become infected.
The first sign is usually fever, with the temperature rising to around 39c (102f).
Other symptoms include a cold, barking cough, sore throat, watery eyes and sensitivity to light.
Grey spots - called Koplik's spots, as tiny as a grain of sand - sometimes appear in the back of the mouth.
They may be seen before the distinctive rash appears, usually around the ears and spreading to the body and the legs within two days.
At first they are very small but soon grow into larger red markings. The child's temperature can rise as high as 40c (104f).
The best treatment is to stay in bed in a cool room without bright lights.
If any of the symptoms get worse, parents should call the child's GP.
Complications include pneumonia and inflammation of the middle ear and the nervous system.
Most children recover within a week. It kills very few in the West, where symptoms are treatable, but globally around 500,000 children a year die of it.
"Dr Chris Watts, director of public health at Lewisham primary care trust, said: "We have a major problem with measles in Lewisham. We must stop measles spreading.""
Start mandatory ring vaccinations.
Source: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23559648-details/Measles+timebomb...+just+49+per+cent+of+children+h ave+MMR/article.do
Measles timebomb... just 49 per cent of children have MMR
Anna Davis
24.09.08
Less than half of London's five-year-olds have been vaccinated against measles amid warnings of an epidemic in the capital, it emerged today.
The revelation raises fears of further outbreaks in the city as children start the school year with no protection against the disease.
Figures from the NHS Information Centre show the percentage of children being immunised against measles, mumps and rubella has dropped in the past two years.
London has the lowest uptake of the MMR jab in the country with only 49 per cent of children having had the full two doses of the vaccine by their fifth birthday. That compares with a national average of 74 per cent.
Dr Brian McCloskey, director for London of the Health Protection Agency, said: "Uptake needs to be above 90 per cent for both doses of the vaccine to ensure we don't see an epidemic in London." The fall in vaccinations comes after massive publicity surrounding measles outbreaks sweeping the capital - there were 257 cases in the first five months of this year compared with 167 in the whole of last year.
James Cleverly, chairman of the London Assembly health and public services committee, said: "Immediate action is needed to protect Londoners from disease before the risks to public health - which are already at unacceptably high levels - increase even further.
"Complications from measles and mumps can be devastating to children and their families. Parents need to give their children a healthy start in life - vaccinations are an effective means of preventing potentially life-threatening diseases."
To get the best results children should have their first MMR vaccine by the age of two and the second by the age of five. But Dr McCloskey said the capital's transient population could be behind the low level of vaccinations. " Historically London has low uptake of both doses of the MMR vaccine, this is possibly due to the fact that it has quite a transient population making it harder to keep track of children's vaccination uptake," he said.
There have also been problems with the computer system which records how many vaccinations have been given in London. "It is worrying that 11 London Primary Care Trusts did not report any data, as without knowing the true scale of the problem we cannot begin to tackle this danger to public health," said Mr Cleverly.
The health agency said it was seeing "continued outbreaks" of measles in London and stressed that it was never too late to complete the MMR course.
Today's figures come one month after health bosses launched a measles vaccination campaign in the capital. Ministers announced each primary care trust in London would be given £60,000 to spend on vaccinating every resident under the age of 18.
"As we have repeatedly warned over the years, due to a poor uptake in the UK of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccines, many adults who have not had the diseases are at risk. The Department of Health recommends all 18-24 year olds should have a boost and any one older than that should have two doses at least one month apart."
Don't reccomend, mandatory.
"Sadly the Department of Health has only budgeted GPs for the 18-24 age which means the burden of paying for the vaccine rests on adults requesting the vaccine."
Money, money - is better to catch the bug as an adult ...
"This is obviously an issue when traveling to both developed countries where there are outbreaks, such as Austria and Spain and countries where children are rarely vaccinated against these diseases, such as China and Iraq.""
A hot suggestion to the EU/WHO estab. to declare an measles emergency instead of looking the bug spreading progression ...
Source: http://www.cambridgenetwork.co.uk/news/article/default.aspx?objid=46255
Measles and chickenpox outbreaks in the UK, news from The Travel Clinic Ltd
Measles - 2007 saw the highest number of measles cases reported in England and Wales since current surveillance began in 1995, with 971 confirmed cases reported, compared with 740 in 2006
. London was the region with the highest number of cases. Measles continues to circulate in the greater London area in 2008. There has been a marked increase in measles cases in Lewisham, south-east London, with 19 confirmed and 63 suspected cases reported between 1 Jan-8 Apr 2008. Vaccine uptake is low in this area with coverage for the Sep 2007 quarter at 64%.
As we have repeatedly warned over the years, due to a poor uptake in the UK of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccines, many adults who have not had the diseases are at risk. The Department of Health recommends all 18-24 year olds should have a boost and any one older than that should have two doses at least one month apart.
Sadly the Department of Health has only budgeted GPs for the 18-24 age which means the burden of paying for the vaccine rests on adults requesting the vaccine.
This is obviously an issue when traveling to both developed countries where there are outbreaks, such as Austria and Spain and countries where children are rarely vaccinated against these diseases, such as China and Iraq.
We have also an outbreak at present in Cambridge of Varicella (chicken pox) the vaccinations are also available at a £54 each vaccine
Here at The Travel Clinic Ltd Cambridge and Ipswich we charge £35 for each combined vaccine
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