HSE WEST has urged parents in the region to have young children immunised against measles, following confirmation of six suspected cases of the illness among children and teenagers in Galway city in the past week.
Five of those affected have been admitted to hospital and are “comfortable”, HSE West said.
The infection, which is most common in children between a year and four years old who have not been immunised, is usually mild but can cause serious complications, including pneumonia, diarrhoea, seizures and brain damage.
Three children died in an outbreak affecting more than 1,600 children in Ireland in 2000, most of them in the east of the country. In 2007, some 55 cases were notified to health authorities.
HSE West director of public health Dr Diarmuid O’Donovan said: “We are urging parents whose children have not been immunised to bring their children for immunisation as soon as possible.
“The measles, mumps rubella vaccine is given free by the GP to babies between 12 and 15 months and a second dose is now given when children begin school. MMR vaccination is also recommended for children aged 11 to 12 years. This can be omitted, however, if two previous doses of MMR have been given.”
At least 95 per cent of children should be immunised, according to the HSE. The latest report from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre shows that only 87 per cent of children in Ireland, and 84 per cent of children in Galway, have had the first dose of MMR by the age of two years.
