Measles Cases in U.K. Force Students Without MMR Shots to Isolate
- by Rishma Parpia
- Published October 10, 2023
- Infections
In July 2023, the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) made an announcement that measles cases had been identified in the U.K. and there was a high risk for a measles outbreak in London that potentially could result in 160,000 cases of measles in the city if precautions were not taken. The agency warned that in some areas of London, 40 percent of children have not gotten measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine and that measles could spread much faster in the highly populated city than anywhere else in the country.1
According to the National Health Service (NHS), childhood vaccination rates in U.K have declined over the last ten years, with more than 102,000 children aged four and five remaining vulnerable to the disease because they have not received MMR shots. U.K. health officials say this includes more than 32,000 children in London.2 Reportedly, there were 128 cases of measles in the first half of 2023 compared with 54 cases in 2022, with 66 per cent of those cases in London.3
As a response to UKHSA’s announcement, local councils in London sent letters to parents stating that if a student contracts measles, any other students in the class that have not received two doses of the MMR vaccine may be required to go home and self-isolate for a period of 21 days.[4]
Barnet Council, Haringey Council, and Hertfordshire County Council sent letters to parents stating, “Those who are not up to date with their MMR vaccinations will be asked to catch up urgently to help stop the outbreak and minimize disruption in schools.”5 The letter goes on to say that:“Any child identified as a close contact of a measles case without satisfactory vaccination status may be asked to self-isolate for up to 21 days. Children who are vaccinated do not need to be excluded from school or childcare.” 6
Paul Hunter, MD, a professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia, said:
If a child is infected and there is a child in their class who isn’t immunized, there is a really high chance that the child will catch it and spread it to other unimmunized children. For children, measles is far more lethal than COVID ever was.7
However, government data from the U.K. shows that deaths from measles have been very low over the last decade, despite declining vaccination rates during the same time period.8
Number of Deaths from Measles in England and Wales in Recent Years is Very Low
Data from the Office of National Statistics in the U.K. showed that the numbers of deaths from measles is extremely low in England and Wales. In 2017, there was one adult death from measles. In 2018, there were two child deaths from acute measles, one of whom with underlying immunological problem and one adult death.
In 2019, there were five deaths from measles, which included one child death and one adult death due to subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), one adult death due to acute measles encephalitis, and two adult deaths from late effect of measles in England and Wales. In 2020, there was one adult death from late effect of measles.9
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