{"id":69937,"date":"2016-04-26T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2016-04-26T08:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?guid=b103234b5cd0652db49018335ff1a41c"},"modified":"2016-04-26T08:30:00","modified_gmt":"2016-04-26T08:30:00","slug":"press-release-phe-urges-parents-to-vaccinate-against-measles-mumps-and-rubella","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?p=69937","title":{"rendered":"Press release: PHE urges parents to vaccinate against measles, mumps and rubella"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Public Health England (PHE<\/abbr>) experts are calling for all parents to get their children vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR<\/abbr>) when the vaccine is offered, or for them to take it up now if they didn\u2019t have it at the scheduled time.<\/p>\n

MMR<\/abbr> vaccine is offered routinely to infants in England, as part of the NHS Childhood Immunisation Programme, from 12 months of age with a second dose offered at 3 years and 4 months of age. Those who missed out will remain susceptible to the diseases, but are still recommended to get the vaccine.<\/p>\n

The call to get vaccinated coincides with European Immunisation Week, which is run by the World Health Organisation (WHO<\/abbr>) with the theme to \u2018close the immunisation gap\u2019. It also coincides with an increase in measles cases currently being seen in England.<\/p>\n

Vaccine uptake rates in England are currently among the highest in Europe, but an increase is still needed to reach the WHO<\/abbr>\u2019s 95% target for MMR<\/abbr> vaccination in 2 year olds.<\/p>\n

The measles immunisation gap in England equates to approximately 24,000 children in England every year (2,000 a month) who are not currently receiving MMR<\/abbr> vaccination at the scheduled time (from 12 months of age) and who remain susceptible to the diseases the vaccine protects against.<\/p>\n

Measles is a highly infectious viral illness that can be very unpleasant and sometimes lead to serious complications. It\u2019s now less common in the UK because of the effective MMR<\/abbr> vaccination programme. Although usually a mild illness in children, measles can be more severe in adults.<\/p>\n

Those who are unvaccinated, remain susceptible to the disease. 2 doses of MMR<\/abbr> vaccination also provides protection against 2 other common highly infectious diseases: mumps and rubella.<\/p>\n

Dr Mary Ramsay, Head of Immunisation at PHE<\/abbr> said:<\/p>\n

\n

We\u2019re asking parents, young people and healthcare professionals to help us eradicate measles in this country. Back in the days before a vaccine was available, hundreds of thousands caught measles and around a hundred people died each year. But now, the whole community benefits from the herd immunity the safe and effective MMR<\/abbr> vaccination offers \u2013 fewer people get ill and the disease\u2019s spread is restricted.<\/p>\n

Following the introduction of the measles vaccination in 1968, the number of cases dropped dramatically and deaths from measles are now extremely rare. That number could fall even further if more people get vaccinated.<\/p>\n

This is an opportunity to consign measles to the history books. The cases we are seeing currently in England are being confirmed mainly in adolescents and young adults, and it\u2019s never too late for them to have the vaccine. Those who have not received 2 doses of the vaccine in the past \u2013 or who are unsure \u2013 should speak to their GP<\/abbr>. There\u2019s no harm in receiving an additional dose where there is any uncertainty.<\/p>\n

Public Health England asks that parents \u2013 and young adults \u2013 remain alert to measles. Signs to look out for can include cold-like symptoms, sore red eyes, a high temperature or a red-brown blotchy rash. Those experiencing symptoms should seek medical attention, but phone ahead before visiting GP<\/abbr> surgeries so arrangements can be made to prevent others from being infected.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s crucial pregnant women have been vaccinated with MMR<\/abbr> as rubella in particular can cause serious complications during pregnancy. The MMR<\/abbr> vaccination provides you and your baby important protection and can be given before you become pregnant or after you\u2019ve given birth. Pregnant women who are unsure if they\u2019ve been vaccinated should check with their GPs.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Background information<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. \n

    Public Health England<\/a> exists to protect and improve the nation\u2019s health and wellbeing, and reduce health inequalities. It does this through world-class science, knowledge and intelligence, advocacy, partnerships and the delivery of specialist public health services. PHE<\/abbr> is an operationally autonomous executive agency of the Department of Health. Follow us on Twitter<\/a> and Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  2. \n

    Coverage of the first dose of MMR<\/abbr> vaccine in the UK is high among infants, with more than 90% of children receiving 1 dose of the vaccine by 2 years of age since 2011. The latest figures for the October to December 2015 quarter show MMR<\/abbr> coverage of 1 dose at 2 years is 92.0% and at 5 years remains close to the WHO<\/abbr> target at 94.9%. Coverage of the second dose at 5 years is 88.3%.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  3. \n

    Latest figures show that the uptake of MMR<\/abbr> vaccine in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland reaches the WHO<\/abbr>\u2019s 95% target for 2 year olds.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  4. \n

    Vaccination for measles was introduced into the UK in 1968, with rubella vaccine for teenage girls in 1972. In 1988, the first combined vaccine for mumps, measles, and rubella \u2013 the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR<\/abbr>) vaccine was introduced.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  5. \n

    People who have not been fully vaccinated (had 2 doses of the MMR<\/abbr> vaccine) or haven\u2019t had the infection before \u2013 particularly those who are immunosuppressed, pregnant or infants \u2013 should see their GP<\/abbr>.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  6. \n

    Women of childbearing age, particularly those thinking of starting a family, should be immune to rubella as this infection can have serious complications in pregnancy. Any women unsure of their MMR<\/abbr> immunisation status should seek advice from their GP<\/abbr> but wait one month after the last dose of MMR<\/abbr> before becoming pregnant. As the vaccine cannot be given in pregnancy, post-natal women should check their MMR<\/abbr> immunisation status with their GP<\/abbr> at their 6-week maternal check.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \n
    \n

    \nPHE<\/abbr> Press Office, infections<\/h3>\n
    \n

    \n61 Colindale Avenue<\/span>
    \nLondon<\/span>
    \nNW9 5EQ<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

    \n

    \n Email<\/span>
    \n     infections-pressoffice@phe.gov.uk <\/a>\n <\/p>\n

    \n Telephone:<\/span>
    \n 020 8327 7901\n <\/p>\n

    \n Out of hours:<\/span>
    \n 020 8200 4400\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    Regional press release<\/h3>\n


    \n     London experiencing measles outbreak<\/a>
    \n (PDF<\/abbr><\/span>, 98.2KB<\/span>, 3 pages<\/span>)
    \n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    England\u2019s uptake of MMR vaccine is among the highest in Europe and an extra 2,000 infants vaccinated each month would reach WHO target.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69937"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=69937"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69937\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":69944,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69937\/revisions\/69944"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=69937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=69937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=69937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}