IN MY VIEW... NOT GIVING A CHILD THEIR JABS IS A FORM OF NEGLECT

UNTIL recently, we thought measles would soon join the ranks of the infectious diseases that, thanks to vaccines, have been all but eradicated — yet it would appear not.

Already this year, there have been more than 900 cases in England alone, compared with 259 in 2017 and just 55 in 1998. By any definition, that is a steep rise: enough for Public Health England to declare a national measles outbreak.

Measles is a highly contagious viral illness — infected particles can linger in the air for two hours after a person has sneezed. It starts with a high temperature, followed by a cough, runny nose, conjunctivitis and, by the third or fourth day, a widespread rash, initially on the face.

Just before the rash breaks out, spots can be seen in the mouth that look like grains of salt — these Koplik’s spots confirm the diagnosis.

But it rarely stops there. Measles temporarily suppresses immune response so, in 30 per cent of cases, another infection, such as pneumonia, can occur. There is also a risk of complications including corneal scarring, convulsion in infants and brain inflammation, which can result in lifelong brain damage. A deeply unpleasant, but rare, complication is subacute sclerosing panencephalitis, a progressive degenerative brain disease occurring ten years or more after the measles infection. It starts with personality and behaviour change, leading on to dementia and, finally, a vegetative state and death.

In developing countries, the death rate from measles is 4 to 10 per cent of affected children — but, as measles is a virus, there is no effective treatment, just hope. And we escape none of the dangers of measles in a civilised society.

But what we do have is easy access to the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine — two injections, given at 12 months and three years, to ensure protection from this disease.

Yet, in England, take-up has fallen for the fourth year in a row. In my view, parents who opt not to let their child have the MMR are at best foolhardy and at worst guilty of neglect.