Measles outbreak: At-risk babies should have MMR at six months
Parents should think twice about heading overseas with babies due to the worldwide resurgence of measles, says doctor
As measles makes a resurgence around the world, Australian immunisation specialists are urging parents to consider a dose of MMR as early as six months or to rethink travelling overseas with an unvaccinated baby.
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) last week updated the immunisation handbook to lower the age for MMR vaccination in special circumstances from nine months to six months, reflecting rising concern over the global measles epidemic.
New data from WHO released this week reveal cases have risen 300% worldwide in the first three months of this year compared with the same period last year.
A total of 170 countries have already reported just over 112,000 measles cases to WHO this year.
