Two doses are needed for optimal protection and, due to the highly infectious nature of measles in particular, sustained vaccination coverage of 95% is required to prevent outbreaks.
The most recent data from July to September 2021 reported 88.6% acceptance of the first dose of MMR at 24 months, with 85.5% acceptance of two doses at 5 years, a decrease from the previous quarters.
Even a small decline in MMR vaccine acceptance, the “canary in the coal mine,” can portend disease outbreaks.
By taking immediate action, we can prevent the resurgence of potentially devastating measles outbreaks following the decline in MMR vaccine uptake, experts argue.
Professor Helen Bedford of UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and Helen Donovan of the Royal College of Nursing , say two doses of the MMR vaccine are needed for optimal protection and that 95% vaccine coverage is required to prevent sprouts. “Even a small decline in MMR vaccine acceptance can herald disease outbreaks,” they warn.
We must improve vaccine acceptance by ensuring that all parents are aware of its importance. There is no upper age limit for the MMR vaccine, so this extends to unvaccinated youth and young adults.
The latest data from July to September 2021 reported 88.6% absorption of the first dose of MMR at 24 months, with 85.5% absorption of two doses at five years, a decrease from the previous quarters, they explain.
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) has launched a campaign to increase uptake of the MMR vaccine in England, in response to declining uptake.
Despite the lack of evidence, the decline in uptake has been attributed to COVID "vaccine fatigue" among the public.
COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to be highly effective at protecting against serious disease, but less effective at preventing transmission, which may have affected parents’ perceptions of the effectiveness of routine childhood vaccines, they explain.
Additionally, parents were reported to have interpreted the March 2020 lockdown instructions to “stay at home” to mean that vaccination services were not available. The research also identified parents’ concerns about NHS overload.
Successful vaccine programs may be victims of their own success, they suggest. In the absence of disease, its severity may be forgotten and vaccination appears unnecessary. They note that nearly half of the 2,000 parents of young children recently surveyed did not know that measles could cause serious complications.
However, as a stark reminder, between 2018 and 2020, nine children and adults died from measles in England and Wales.
Although the focus of the current campaign is measles, we must not forget mumps and rubella. A cohort of young adults who did not receive MMR in childhood may be left unprotected against rubella.
The dramatic decline and subsequent return of confidence in vaccines after the 1998 MMR vaccine safety debacle demonstrated that recovery is feasible. In a survey of 600 parents of young children conducted in August 2021, more than 95% agreed that vaccines were important for their children’s health.
“We must take advantage of this trust to prevent the resurgence of these potentially devastating infections,” they conclude.
