Measles making a comeback in the U.S.

The rise in the number of measles cases in the U.S. is concerning health authorities who fear the disease is making a comeback after a decade of being eradicated.

It is suspected the rise in cases is linked to parents opting out of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine because of fears over a link to autism, which persists despite a lack of any credible scientific research to back such claims.

It is now thought that 2 to 3 per cent of American school children are under-vaccinated because their parents are opting out on principle.

This year alone there have been 72 confirmed cases of measles in ten states, 7 reported in Illinois last week.

Before the MMR vaccine was introduced in the U.S. in 1963, measles was responsible for 48,000 hospitalisations, 400 to 500 deaths with a 1,000 patients left with disabilities and health authorities fear a that unless confidence in the MMR vaccine is restored the disease could make a devastating comeback.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says most of the current cases have occurred in children whose parents claimed exemption from vaccination due to religious or personal beliefs.

In Britain too health authorities have also seen a reluctance in parents to vaccinate their children because of autism fears.

The CDC says measles is a highly contagious vaccine-preventable disease and the most deadly of all childhood rash/fever illnesses.

It is spread by droplets or direct contact with nasal or throat secretions of infected persons.

Children should be given the first dose of MMR vaccine soon after the first birthday (12 to 15 months of age) and the second dose before they start kindergarten.

Measles can cause serious complications, such as ear infections, pneumonia, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) and even death.

Measles is still common in other parts of the world and can be imported into the U.S. from many countries, including countries in Europe and worldwide, 20 million cases of measles still occur each year.

The disease is a significant cause of vaccine-preventable death among children - in 2005, 311,000 children under age 5 died from the disease.

The CDC says the MMR vaccine is strongly endorsed by medical and public health experts as safe and effective.