MMR - the risks of not vaccinating your child
Already, the effects of low MMR take-up are being felt in some communities and it could get worse. Joanne White, of the
Public Health Laboratory Services (PHLS) immunisation division says, "If vaccine uptake does not increase, we would expect to see outbreaks of infections when these children reach school age, when they start mixing and infections have the opportunity to spread."
The risks:
- Since the beginning of 2000, an outbreak of measles in the Dublin area has claimed the lives of three children. The outbreak is the result of low uptake of the MMR vaccine (74.4 per cent).
- In the Salford area, 103 cases of measles have been reported since November
1999 - mostly among unvaccinated children from a community with low uptake. Three adults were hospitalised with complications.
- In Holland, there have been 2,300 cases of measles among a religious
group opposed to vaccination - three children died and 20 per cent of all cases had serious complications.
- Even without complications, most people have forgotten how horrible measles can be. "It's a debilitating, miserable disease," says south London GP Claire
Girada, who is very strongly pro-vaccination. "A child will be bedridden for at least four to five days with a high temperature, and off school for at least 10 days. A significant number of children do suffer complications, including
deafness and a large minority are left with chest problems. And while it's rare, measles can cause brain damage."
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