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Volume 4 No 30; 30 July 2010

Confirmed measles cases in England and Wales in 2010: update to end-June

Thirty-three measles cases with onset dates in June have been laboratory confirmed giving a provisional total of 120 cases for the first half of 2010. This is fewer than reported in the previous month when 54 cases were identified.

So far this year, all regions have reported cases with the highest number from London (38 cases), followed by the East of England (31 cases) and North West (19 cases) regions (see table). Cases continue to be identified in nurseries and schools settings.

Eighty of the 120 cases (66%) this year have been eligible for two scheduled MMR vaccinations and are in the age groups that have been targeted by the MMR catch-up campaign; 76 of these were known to be unvaccinated.

In June, East of England, Yorkshire and Humber, South East and East Midlands regions have reported small number of cases associated with travelling communities. However, during July a large outbreak (currently around 70 suspected cases) has been reported linked to number of events attended by members of the travelling community from across the country. A letter was sent from the Department of Health informing Immunisation co-ordinators and Local Public Health Directors of the rise in cases in this community where immunisation uptake is poor [1]. The Health Protection Agency has established an Incident Team co-ordinating the activities of the Agency and issued briefings to Local Health Protection Units.

A detailed age breakdown of cases for 2010 to the end of June by region is available at http://www.hpa.org.uk/web/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1223019390211.

Confirmed cases of measles by region and month of onset, England and Wales: January 2010 to June 2010

Month

Lond-on

East Mids

East of Engl'd

North East

North West

South East

South West

West Mids

Wales

York & Humb

Total
Total 2009

198

47

74

122

79

276

43

95

159

51

1144

Jan 10

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Feb 10

-

-

2

-

-

3

-

-

-

-

5

Mar 10

1

-

2

-

-

3

2

-

-

-

8

Apr 10

7

-

2

-

5

2

1

-

3

-

20
May 10

27

2

12

1

5

3

1

-

2

1

54
June 10

3

-

13

-

9

3

1

1

-

3

33
Total 2010

38

2

31

1

19

14

5

1

5

4

120

 

Number of laboratory confirmed cases in England and Wales by month of onset: January 2006 to June 2010

 

Reference

1. Measles outbreaks in Gypsy and Traveller communities, Letter, DOH. Available at: www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Lettersandcirculars/Dearcolleagueletters/DH_117799.