WHO warning: 'explosion of measles cases over the winter'

[itsatiggerday]

Anyone else seen this in the paper (Times) today? Don't have online access so can't link but BBC version also covers.

Basic message is that all of Europe needs to focus on improving immunisation rates across populations that are inadequately covered. Young adults who had not been vaccinated are experiencing the most cases, I guess as they were small when the wretched useless study freaked everyone out and didn't get any vaccinations. Uptake has increased here since it was so discredited, but we're still below herd immunity.

Can't believe we're letting children and teenagers die from a disease we have controlled in the past :(

Up to 1997ish, the single measles jab was available on the NHS. So for UK, the pool of unimmunised are the under 14s.

If it's hitting young adults (a cohort when UK vaccination levels were very high), then this must be unexpected, and possibly unexplained. Is the protective effect wearing off? Or is it associated with a different immunisation pattern elsewhere in Europe?

Well, the Times just states 'Most cases were among young adults who had not been vaccinated' and BBC 'Ninety per cent of European cases were amongst adolescents and adults who had not been vaccinated or people where it was not known if they had been vaccinated or not' so I guess making certain of being vaccinated is at least a start.

The focus is on the high incidence period of Feb-May and the fact that lower vaccination rates are correlated with a period of resurgence of the disease after a sustained period of low incidence.

For me, my DC2 is in a 'vulnerable group' though, so even though have had them both vaccinated, a lack of herd immunity could still be a problem and there's precious little I can do about it.

bump. anyone else concerned?

There was a massive outbreak last winter in our area (Geneva and neighbouring France). We were advised by the school to have our children vaccinated.

Hmm. What about adults, though? Should we all go and get vaccinated? I'm pretty sure I've never had MMR as a child.

Winny
I think that most adults were vaccinated with the single vaccine. I am pretty sure I was.

Yes, it wouldn't have been MMR, would it. I'm not sure I've had measles vac- IIRC there were children still getting it when I was a child. I'm not from the UK, though.
DS had both MMR, DD only one. Will take her for the second one.

I had measles as a child. It wasn't that bad, but I know it can be damaging. It's a matter of luck as to how badly it affects you.

Ds1 had the MMR but ds2 didn't as he had some red flags for autism and I thought I'd leave it for a while - then they told us not to bother as it wouldn't work after a certain age. I think that's what they said.

Anyway - might look into the single vacs again. Oh, and he had inconclusive result from the HPA at 10 months old, which might have been measles.

Hmmm

Measles vaccine was introduced in the UK in 1960s and then MMR in 1988, but I guess that might leave a lot of adults older than 50 or so unvaccinated? Unless there was a catch up programme when it was first introduced. Not sure.

Stats on h2g2 estimate that without the vaccine at all, the UK would see 600,000 cases per year, with 100,000 being children and between 50 and 100 deaths. So most people would only have an annoying illness, but for the few it can be tragic. But that does suggest that adult infection is still an issue.

I'm just really surprised that there is relatively little push for this. Compared to the drive to get the flu vaccine round this year etc.

JaneBirkin - the BBC article was quoting people definitely pushing for people who hadn't been immunised to go and get covered so think they were talking rubbish at you! Although I think someone told me that 13-24 months is a particularly high risk period which is why the UK vaccinate at 13 mths first time round, so maybe they were just saying you were past that.

a wee bit concerned, but DH had measles, mumps and rubella (the diseases), I had measles vaccine (immunity tested recently and good), and had mumps and rubella, kids both had 2x MMR (immunity not tested)... more concerned for people who are not immune. A colleague had mumps recently (for the second time, plus he thinks he had one MMR ) and it was no fun...

I'm getting DS, 7 mo, the single measles jab before we go to France in 2 weeks. It will only be 1 shot but apparently that takes 96% of the time and some controlled exposure is better than none. It messes up his MMR schedule but mumps and rubella are less serious in children, I have good rubella immunity and I would isolate him at the first sign. Might go for single rubella too though and leaves mumps until preschool booster time (not because I'm scared of MMR, because I want him to have the fullest protection possible and that means measles before I take him into the non-caving hotspot AKA my home town).

I thought the point of rubella immunisation was to protect the future unborn babies of the girls immunised? So I am not sure about the need for rubella for your DS.

pipsy76 : the purpose of all children having rubella is to minimise it in the herd. If it still circulated freely amongst little boys then it would still have a strong enough hold in the community to increase the risks to unimmunised pregnant women - or those for whom the protective effect of an infancy immunisation has worn off (and how many of us have our immunity levels checked before TTC?). As the single jab aged 11ish was common up to the late 1990s, we actually don't know how long the rubella component of MMR offers reliable protection.

BTW: fraktious it won't mess up his MMR schedule. In places such as France (where an early additional measles jab can sometimes be given), MMR still follows at 13+ months and 3ish years. This is because the protective effect of maternal antibodies remains until around the one year point, which means a baby immunised before then may well rely on the remaining maternal antibodies and not form a full independent response of their own.

So you will still need to have MMR (or a full set of single jabs) at the usual timings. An early jab is an addition, not a replacement for part of the schedule.

I am in France (DOM). Paed said if early measles was given MMR was contraindicated at 13 months. I was a bit because I've heard others opt for early additional measles before heading to metropole but apparently not.

frak
Are they expecting another break out this year? It was quite scary around here last year (Haute Savoie area).

If anyone is heading for the French Alps for skiing (Chamonix, Megeve ...) then check your DC's vaccinations are up to date.

Well at the 5mo check I was specifically asked whether our plans included travel to France metropolitan and when I said they did we were advised to consider the single vaccination. So either they are expecting one or Reunion is being very protectionist and doesn't want infants carrying it back here. It would be interesting to see whether babies in France were getting a booster.

frak can you find out the name of the vaccine and write directly to the company. this information should be in the SmPC (the Dr part of the package leaflet).

the information for MMRVaxpro, scroll down to 4.5

M-M-RVAXPRO should be given concomitantly at separate injection sites, or one month before or after administration of other live virus vaccines.

frak- in DD's nursery they are advising for babies to be vaccinated early (9 months I think). I can't remember if it's MMR or a single measles, though. I think it's the single jab and then MMR as scheduled at 12-13 months and then at 2 or whenever it's supposed to be given.

So pleased I read this, I had forgotten about 12 month vaccs so just called docs to arrange. My dd is 1 on 19/12 but they have no appointments until 11 Jan. I had a look on nhs site which said vaccs at 12-13 months and gave a list of the jabs so I thought she'd have them all together and it'd be fine at any point between 12-13 months. But is this not right then? I'm worried now as she's been constantly ill since starting nursery and picks up everything going.

Vaccine is in the fridge so easy to find out it's the GSK one, which is odd because the prescription was written for one by Pasteur, but the pharmacist assures me they were the same (like infanrix quinta and pentavac).

I'll check again but I'm losing confidence in this paed. Apparently BFing has no value after 6 months and can be harmful but I don't want to travel 40mins to the paed I do like and none of the others are accepting new children without a referral from an OB. Stupid system.

Interesting experiences to read. Have any of you in France heard anything about why there seem to have been particularly more outbreaks there previously? And are they regionally specific or is the metropole thing just because of population density?

We don't live in a city itself but I know general vaccination rates round here are low. It's an area full of people who think 'they' are out to get us by damaging our children deliberately

Just had a look and invs website and they say that the 3rd wave is finishing/finished and they expect the 4th to start soon (as in weeks). Highest incidence in the south east, not in Ile-de-France-surprised at that!

It's rather worrying that a Paed said that bf beyond 6 months has no value and may be harmful. Good grief.