Laboratory confirmed cases of measles, mumps and rubella, England: July to September 2014
Updated 27 February 2015
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/measles-mumps-and-rubella-laboratory-confirmed-cases-in-england-2014/laboratory-confirmed-cases-of-measles-mumps-and-rubella-england-july-to-september-2014
Measles, mumps and rubella are notifiable diseases and healthcare professionals suspecting a case are legally required to inform the local PHE Health Protection Team. Oral fluid testing is offered to all notified cases to confirm the diagnosis. This is part of the enhanced surveillance for these vaccine preventable diseases. Recent infection is confirmed by measuring the presence of IgM antibodies or detecting viral particles (by PCR) in the samples.
Data presented here are for the third quarter of 2014 (ie July to September). Cases include those confirmed by oral fluid testing (IgM antibody tests and/or PCR) at the Virus Reference Department, Colindale, and national routine laboratory reports (mumps infections only) (table 1). Analyses are by date of onset and regional breakdown figures relate to Government Office Regions.
Quarterly figures for cases confirmed by oral fluid antibody detection only from 2013 and annual total numbers of confirmed cases by region and age are available from:
- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/measles-confirmed-cases
- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mumps-confirmed-cases
- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/rubella-confirmed-cases
0.1 Table 1. Laboratory-confirmed cases of measles, mumps and rubella and oral fluid IgM antibody tests in notified cases: weeks 27-39/2014
* This represents the number of infections reported as possible cases and investigated by individual PHE centres in England
1. Measles
Eleven laboratory-confirmed measles infections were identified in England with onset dates in July to September compared to 16 cases in the second quarter of the year [1]. This brings the total confirmed infections for 2014 to date to 99.
Ten of the 11 confirmed infections this quarter were identified in London with 5 linked to a nursery. Only 1 case was reported from the rest of England. Across the UK, Scotland identified 4 new infections, Northern Ireland reported 1 and Wales 2 in the same period.
Five of the 12 English cases in the quarter were linked to recent travel abroad; 1 case each to Thailand, China, Indonesia, Australia and Philippines. Measles virus sequence was obtained from 11 out of the 12 English cases, 1 of 4 Scottish cases, 2 of 2 Welsh cases, but no sequence from Northern Ireland.
Seven cases were in children below the age of 15 years and the remaining 4 cases were adults aged 20 to 33 years. No case this quarter reported receiving a measles-containing vaccine.
2. Mumps
There were 364 laboratory confirmed cases of mumps in England with onset in the third quarter of 2014 compared to 880 and 847 cases in the first and second quarters, bringing total mumps infections to 2,091. This follows the trend observed over the last decade of an increase in cases in first two quarters of the year (figure) [1]. Additionally, 27 oral fluid samples were confirmed from Wales this quarter bringing the Welsh total for the 2014 to date to 376.
Cases continue to be identified predominantly in young adults between 16 and 30 years of age (232/364 64%, table 2). Over 40% of all cases this quarter have reported receiving at least 1 dose of MMR vaccination in childhood, suggesting some waning immunity may be contributing to transmission. Mumps cases were identified in all regions of England although greater numbers were identified in London and the South East regions (table 2).
2.1 Table 2. Laboratory confirmed cases of mumps by age group and region, England: weeks 27-39/2014
| Region | <1 | 1-4 | 5-9 | 10-14 | 15-19 | 20-24 | 25+ | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North East | – | – | – | – | 3 | 5 | 3 | 11 |
| North West | – | – | – | – | 8 | 5 | 17 | 30 |
| Yorkshire & Humber | – | – | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 20 |
| East Midlands | – | 2 | – | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 32 |
| West Midlands | – | – | 2 | 6 | 8 | 20 | 21 | 57 |
| East of England | – | – | 2 | 5 | 9 | 7 | 18 | 41 |
| London | 1 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 15 | 44 | 87 |
| South East | – | – | 4 | 4 | 10 | 20 | 32 | 70 |
| South West | – | – | – | – | 3 | 4 | 9 | 16 |
| Total | 1 | 5 | 16 | 29 | 64 | 89 | 160 | 364 |
2.2 Laboratory confirmed cases of mumps by quarter, England, 2003 to 2014
3. Rubella
There were no confirmed rubella infections this quarter.
4. Reference
- PHE. Laboratory confirmed cases of measles, mumps and rubella, England: April to June 2014. HPR 8(33): immunisation, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/measles-mumps-and-rubella-laboratory-confirmed-cases-in-england-2014/laboratory-confirmed-cases-of-measles-mumps-and-rubella-england-april-to-june-2014.