Measles

[ReganSomerset]

There've been a few stories in the news recently about measles outbreaks and I'm concerned that DD, 11 months, might catch it before she has her jabs in two weeks. I'm back at work now but we have arranged for her to go to a toddler group every day with her nanny, as she did while I was on maternity leave. DM and DF say I should have her miss the groups until the jabs just to be on the safe side but I'm not sure.

DD is naturally quite shy and gaining the confidence to get stuck in at toddler groups has taken a long time for her. She missed a lot recently due to chickenpox (which she caught before she reached the age range for the vaccine) and I'm worried that missing another two weeks may cause her to lose some of the progress she's made socially. On the other hand, measles can be very nasty and cause deafness- I'd feel horribly guilty if she caught it.

What do you think?

Wh

If there are measles cases in the local area i would probably stay at home but i am a worrier.

I'm a worrier too, unfortunately! It doesn't generally stop me from doing things but does make it difficult to tell whether my anxiety is reasonable or not.

If you have measles locally I would really give the groups a miss until she's had her vaccinations. The complications of measles can be very serious.

I think it depends on if you know outbreaks are local to you. Recently we were staying with a friend in England who’s anti vax and I was concerned about our 8mo old, but looked this page up and found no recent outbreaks near where they live. I know this doesn’t eradicate risk but it was a small risk to take imo.

Oops forgot page www.gov.uk/government/news/measles-outbreaks-across-england

DD will build up her confidence at her groups soon enough so if you’re worried I’d keep her off. I had measles when I was 9 (no vaccine in the 1960s) and my hearing has been affected. Not terribly but enough to make being in busy environments very difficult. I also still remember just how ill I was at the time. It was really horrible. DD is only tiny and 2 weeks out of her toddler groups will make no difference to her confidence other than in the very short term. Measles on the other hand might make a difference and by keeping her away you will know you’ve done the best you can to minimise her chances of getting it.

You need 2 doses of MMR to be protected I thought ? One at a year old and one at about 3-4 year old so surely if that's the case you can't avoid socializing with other children for years because your child isn't fully vaccinated against measles

I think if there are outbreaks in your area you could ask for her to have the vaccinations early. When my DD2 now 6 was 6months we had a local outbreak. She needed to go to nursery for me to go back to work. She had a vaccination at 6 months and then also followed the normal vaccination schedule. That was the advice from the hospital.

Is there some reason you think she might be at risk - a local outbreak? There were only about 850 cases across entire U.K. from January- October last year. The majority of cases were in teenagers.

The UK achieved WHO measles elimination status last year, so the overall risk of measles to the UK population is really low. Most cases were from outside of UK but bought here due to travel. Many outbreaks are related to festivals - not something you need to worry about just yet.

Measles is very nasty. It can cause far worse than deafness but the overall complication rate remains minimal. I person in 1000 may get encephalitis, 1 in about 5,000 may die. Far more will get ear infections or pneumonia. There has only been one death possibly linked to measles in past five years in U.K.

That’s not minimising the disease but putting the risk in proportion. Greater risk from driving to the playgroup than from measles. Greater risk of choking on a small toy part than measles. Greater risk of a febrile convulsions if she gets a viral illness.

Accept you can’t negate all risks - and neither should you try. Go, relax and enjoy the company.

Thanks for the opinions everyone and for the link @Merename. @CherryPavlova thank you, I've been looking into the outbreak nearby and it does seem to be university students. It's been very reassuring.