More than half a millions children in the UK were not given the measles vaccine between 2010 and 2017. This comes after NHS chief Simon Stevens warned measles cases had almost quadrupled in just one year and urged families to get the vaccine. Globally, 169 million children missed out on the first dose of the vaccine over seven years.
Measles is a highly infectious viral illness that can lead to serious health complications including infection of the lungs, eyes and brain. One in 25,000 cases of brain complications can be fatal. Babies and children with weakened immune systems are the most at risk of complications. Millions of lives have been saved due to the vaccinations. The first dose is given to babies around their first birthday and the second is before starting school when they are three to four years old.
The report by Unicef shows that between 2010 and 2017:
- The US topped the list for the number of unvaccinated children in high-income countries, with 2,593,000 missing the first dose of the vaccine
- The comparable figure for France was 600,000
- The UK came third, with 527,000 children not getting their first dose of the vaccine over the seven-year period
- In Nigeria, four million children under one did not get the first dose of the vaccine
Henrietta Fore, executive director at Unicef, said: “The measles virus will always find unvaccinated children.
“If we are serious about averting the spread of this dangerous but preventable disease, we need to vaccinate every child, in rich and poor countries alike.”
Measles cases are up 300% in the first three months of 2019 compare to the same period in 2018. Public Health England said though the overall risk to the public in England was low, unimmunised people were in danger of catching the disease while outbreaks continued in Europe. Ukraine, Madagascar and India have been the worst affected by the disease this year, tens of thousands of people reported cases per million people.
20 countries in sub-Saharan Africa had not introduced a second dose, putting more than 17 million infants a year at a greater risk of getting measles as a child.
Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisations at Public Health England, said: “These numbers highlight the importance of not only routine vaccination but also making sure anyone who missed a dose is caught up to minimise the risk of outbreaks. When you consider absolute numbers it highlights that even a tiny slip – one or two per cent different in vaccination uptake – could make a big difference.”
