tokz1k
21-05-2009, 04:35 AM
Not sure of this has been posted yet...
Date / time [UTC] 02/05/2009 - 09:49:06
Number of infected persons 137
More than 70 youngsters are now feared to have contracted measles following an outbreak of the highly contagious condition. Eleven youngsters have been confirmed as having the potentially fatal condition and there are a further 63 suspected cases in Hartlepool alone that have come to light in just the last two weeks. Bosses at Hartlepool Primary Care Trust say they are still expecting to deal with "many more cases" and are urging parents to ensure their children are immunised. One mum whose son contracted the condition last week said she thought he could die after he started showing symptoms. Mum of seven Iris Scott said her nine-year-old son, Leon Amerigo, was not inoculated against measles when he was a baby over fears of the side effects. And her fears escalated even further as he had been in contact with her son Kyle Amerigo, 11, daughter Sophie Amerigo, six, and six-week-old granddaughter Maisie Amerigo, all of who were not protected. The outbreak came as figures revealed only 82 per cent of youngsters are getting their first dose of the MMR jab that immunises against the condition. Medics said MMR figures dropped in recent years following fears over the safety of the jab and reported links with autism. But they say the vaccination is safe. Professor Peter Kelly, the director of public health for Teesside, said: "We are working on there being 74 cases and we fully expect there to be many more yet. "Children with measles are poorly, but we haven't had any reports of any serious side affects yet. But people shouldn't be complacent as measles is a serious disease that can have very serious side affects. "We always like to find an index case which shows where it originates, but in this instance we haven't been able to find that." Parents are being advised to keep their children away from babies, pregnant women or anyone who is unvaccinated if they think they could have the condition. They should then ring their GP rather than visiting a medical centre as contact could spread it further. Prof Kelly added: "Since the outbreak we have had more than 100 children come forward for vaccination, but we want more. "We would strongly urge parents who have who aren't vaccinated to get them vaccinated. This is a safe and effective vaccine.")
EDIS Number EP-20090502-21517-GBR
Date / time [UTC] 02/05/2009 - 09:49:06
Number of infected persons 137
More than 70 youngsters are now feared to have contracted measles following an outbreak of the highly contagious condition. Eleven youngsters have been confirmed as having the potentially fatal condition and there are a further 63 suspected cases in Hartlepool alone that have come to light in just the last two weeks. Bosses at Hartlepool Primary Care Trust say they are still expecting to deal with "many more cases" and are urging parents to ensure their children are immunised. One mum whose son contracted the condition last week said she thought he could die after he started showing symptoms. Mum of seven Iris Scott said her nine-year-old son, Leon Amerigo, was not inoculated against measles when he was a baby over fears of the side effects. And her fears escalated even further as he had been in contact with her son Kyle Amerigo, 11, daughter Sophie Amerigo, six, and six-week-old granddaughter Maisie Amerigo, all of who were not protected. The outbreak came as figures revealed only 82 per cent of youngsters are getting their first dose of the MMR jab that immunises against the condition. Medics said MMR figures dropped in recent years following fears over the safety of the jab and reported links with autism. But they say the vaccination is safe. Professor Peter Kelly, the director of public health for Teesside, said: "We are working on there being 74 cases and we fully expect there to be many more yet. "Children with measles are poorly, but we haven't had any reports of any serious side affects yet. But people shouldn't be complacent as measles is a serious disease that can have very serious side affects. "We always like to find an index case which shows where it originates, but in this instance we haven't been able to find that." Parents are being advised to keep their children away from babies, pregnant women or anyone who is unvaccinated if they think they could have the condition. They should then ring their GP rather than visiting a medical centre as contact could spread it further. Prof Kelly added: "Since the outbreak we have had more than 100 children come forward for vaccination, but we want more. "We would strongly urge parents who have who aren't vaccinated to get them vaccinated. This is a safe and effective vaccine.")
EDIS Number EP-20090502-21517-GBR