Measles and mumps cases soar as parents shun triple vaccine

MEASLES cases have soared by 60% in Scotland putting the country on the verge of an epidemic of the deadly disease as parents shun the controversial MMR jab.

Cases of the childhood disease have been falling steadily for almost 30 years, but the latest official figures obtained by Scotland on Sunday show they rose dramatically from 256 in 2001 to 405 last year.

Notifications of rubella jumped from 234 to 371 over the same period and mumps cases increased from 155 to 250 as MMR vaccination rates in Scotland have fallen to an all-time low.

It is the first increase in cases of mumps, which can lead to meningitis, deafness and sterility, in nearly a decade. The incidence of Rubella, which can cause severe birth defects including deafness, blindness, heart conditions and brain damage, has not increased since 1996.

The new figures will be a blow for the Scottish Executive and the vast majority of doctors who have been trying to convince concerned parents that the triple vaccine is safe. The government and its medical advisers have consistently argued that parents will be putting their children at risk by refusing the MMR jab, as measles can cause blindness, brain damage and even death.

But last night, opposition politicians and campaigners, convinced the triple vaccine is behind a rise in cases of autism, said the rise in measles, mumps and rubella underlined the need for the Executive to make alternative single vaccines against each of the three diseases freely available on the NHS.

Public health experts described the downward trend in MMR vaccinations as deeply worrying. Dr Charles Saunders, the chairman of the British Medical Association’s Scottish public health committee, said: "It used to be that we could have a severe outbreak or epidemic every two or three years. We are not in that situation in Scotland yet but if this persists for long enough, it is probably inevitable.

"What’s beginning to happen is that where wild rubella or measles virus is brought into the UK, the chance of coming into contact with someone who is not immune is going up and eventually the pool of people who are not immune will be big enough to cause an outbreak."

The alarming figures come in the wake of recently released statistics showing that the number of Scottish children receiving the MMR vaccine is at a record low. The latest figures showed an 86.6% uptake, well below the "safe" level of 95% recommended by doctors to ensure herd immunity. In parts of Scotland take-up is comparable with that in London where a serious outbreak of measles last year affected 90 people.

Campaigners opposed to the controversial vaccine have been urging parents to boycott the jabs, which are offered to children aged between 12 and 15 months, because they fear it could cause autism.

Instead, they have recommended that parents give their children single vaccines to avoid a potentially damaging "overload" on the immune system which they claim can be caused with the triple immunisation.

But single vaccines can only be obtained from private doctors at a cost of around £300 which means that many children are simply going without protection.

Last night Bill Welsh, chairman of the pressure group Action Against Autism, which opposes MMR, said the increase in cases of measles, mumps and rubella was predictable and that doctors and the government were responsible.

Welsh, who blames MMR for autism in his eight-year-old grandson Luke, said: "It could have easily been forecast that these dreadful diseases would return, but the government has a responsibility to provide an alternative on the NHS.

"The reason people are turning away from the MMR vaccine is because they are witnessing the epidemic of autism which affects families in every part of Scotland. People should not be faced with a choice between terrible disease and a lifelong incurable illness but we are dealing with the most stubborn and insolent men on the planet; the medical hierarchy."

Welsh said that thousands were now turning to private doctors for single vaccines but that this was not an option to poor families.

Dr Peter Copp, a private doctor based in Edinburgh, who administers single vaccines to around 100 children every month, said many people were confused and worried about MMR. However, he added that many families could not afford the £300 course of vaccines he and a handful of others in Scotland offer.

Copp urged the Executive to at least offer free single jabs to key groups including families with a history of autistic spectrum disorder. He warned: "We are not having anything resembling epidemics at present. At worst we have had the odd cluster but there is no doubt that as vaccination levels remain low the chances of there being a real outbreak will increase."

SNP health spokeswoman Shona Robison described the increase in measles, mumps and rubella as "very frightening". She urged parents to make use of the triple vaccine "because there is no scientific evidence that it is dangerous".

Mary Scanlon, the Tory health spokeswoman, said: "There is no doubt that single vaccines are better than taking no vaccines for those who don’t wish the triple vaccine and there is no reason not to offer them other than the bloody-mindedness of a few politicians."

Last night an Executive spokeswoman insisted that the MMR vaccine remained the best way to tackle the diseases.