England's Measles Outbreak Continues in February 2024

During the global measles outbreak of 2024, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced yesterday that there has been a potential slowing of measles cases in England.

On February 15, 2024, the UKHSA reported that since October 2023, England has confirmed 521 measles cases. There were 252 in January and 50 so far in February 2024.

From a location perspective, 69% (358 of 521) of these cases have been in the West Midlands, 14% in London, and 7% in Yorkshire and The Humber. The remaining cases were reported in other regions of England.

Across the West Midlands, the population centers of Birmingham (1.1 million) and Coventry (350,000) are located.

Dr Vanessa Saliba, UKHSA Consultant Epidemiologist, commented in a press statement, "As expected, due to worryingly low MMR vaccine uptake in some areas across England."

"We are now seeing clusters of cases in other (England) regions."

There are two different brands of MMR vaccine available in the UK. These are called Priorix and MMRVaxPro.

The UKHSA stated the data published in this epidemiological overview is currently provisional, with the number of cases for the most recent months likely to increase.