Health officials have issued a warning over a potential surge in measles cases ahead of the beginning of the new school year. Parents are being urged to ensure their children are fully vaccinated against “easily preventable” diseases such as measles, whooping cough, meningitis, diphtheria and polio as part of a six-week campaign by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England. It comes amid concerns that uptake of the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine is still too low in some areas of England.
There was a surge of measles cases in England in 2023 following an outbreak of the disease in Birmingham. UKHSA data shows there have been 2,278 lab-confirmed measles cases in England from the start of 2024 up to 5 August. In the four weeks to 5 August, there were 153 cases, most of which were in London which sparked an MMR catch-up campaign.
According to the UKHSA, in the past 12 months the NHS has administered 180,000 additional MMR doses, with more than 51,000 of these given to children aged five or under. More than 13 per cent of previously unvaccinated children younger than five had their first dose of the jab during the period, while uptake of the second dose among black, Caribbean or African children aged between three and five was up by 4.9 per cent.
Dr Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at the UKHSA, said: “As a mum and doctor it is especially tragic to see kids suffering when these diseases are so e.