Latest news with #AlderHey
Daily Mirror
6 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Measles hotspots mapped after child dies and UK 'redoubles efforts' to vaccinate
After a child died at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool, efforts have been stepped up as the government urge parents to increase their efforts to vaccinate children A new map has revealed the current epicenter of England's measles outbreak - as the government says the nation must 'redouble its efforts' to vaccinate more children after the death of a child. Earlier this month it was revealed that a child, who was ill with measles and other health problems, had died at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool. In a statement, Alder Hey said it was ' concerned about the increasing number of children and young people who are contracting measles'. Alder Hey said it had treated 17 children for effects and complications of measles since June. The case marks the second death linked to acute measles in Britain this decade, and has triggered concern from hospital bosses and public health officials. Check measles cases and vaccination rates in your area using our interactive map below After the latest death, Health Secretary Wes Streeting told Parliament that 'no child in this country should be dying of measles'. He said the tragedy showed 'we have got to redouble our efforts on vaccination'. The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) jab provides over 95% protection against getting ill. However vaccination rates have slumped across England. Not one council area in England has hit the target rate of getting 95% of children vaccinated, which the World Health Authority (WHO) says is necessary to achieve herd immunity, which stops illnesses from transmitting across the population. In 22 council areas, the vaccination rate for the MMR jab has slipped below 75%. At the same time, cases of measles are rising. So far this year, 529 cases of measles have been confirmed by laboratory reports. The majority were in children aged 10 and under, but measles has also been diagnosed in young people and adults. Hackney, in Central London, has the lowest vaccination rate in the country - and the second highest number of confirmed cases of measles so far in 2025. The latest figures show that just three in five children had received both doses of the MMR jab by their fifth birthday (60.8%) in Hackney. As our map shows, there have been 46 lab-confirmed cases of measles in the central London borough so far in 2025. Only one council area in England has seen more cases of measles so far this year, Bristol (47). Vaccination rates were much higher in Bristol, at 83%, but still well below the 95% target. After Bristol and Hackney, Leeds (29 confirmed cases of measles), Salford (27), Birmingham (26), and Newham (24), have seen the highest number of cases. None of the 13 hotspot areas with at least 10 confirmed cases of measles so far this year have a vaccination rate above 90%. Fewer than seven in 10 children (70%) are up to date with their MMR jabs in four of the areas with the biggest number of infections, and fewer than 80% in eight areas. Our map only shows areas with at least 10 confirmed cases of measles. This is because UKHSA suppresses case counts in areas with fewer than 10 cases.
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Health
- Al Arabiya
UK battles anti-vax information after child dies from measles
A child's death from measles has sparked urgent calls from British public health officials to get children vaccinated, as the UK faces an onslaught of misinformation on social media, much of it from the United States. Measles is a highly infectious disease that can cause serious complications. It is preventable through double MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) jabs in early childhood. Health Secretary Wes Streeting on July 14 confirmed to parliament that a child had died in the UK of measles. No details have been released, but The Sunday Times and Liverpool Echo newspapers reported the child had been severely ill with measles and other serious health problems in Alder Hey hospital in the northwestern city. Anti-vaxxers quickly posted unconfirmed claims about the death on social media. One British influencer, Ellie Grey, who has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, posted a video denying the child died from measles. 'Measles isn't this deadly disease... it's not dangerous,' she said. Grey criticised Alder Hey for posting a video 'really, really pushing and manipulating parents into getting the MMR vaccine'. Her video was reposted by another British influencer, Kate Shemirani, a struck-off ex-nurse who posts health conspiracy theories. 'No vaccine has ever been proven safe and no vaccine has ever been proven effective,' Shemirani claimed falsely. Liverpool's public health chief Matthew Ashton attacked those 'spreading misinformation and disinformation about childhood immunizations' in the Echo newspaper, saying 'they need to take a very long, hard look at themselves.' 'For those of you that don't know, measles is a really nasty virus,' he said in a video, adding that the jab is a way of 'protecting yourself and your loved ones'. Alder Hey said it has treated 17 children with measles since June. It posted a video in which a pediatric infectious diseases consultant, Andrew McArdle, addresses measles 'myths', including that the MMR jab causes autism. This false claim comes from a debunked 1998 study by a British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, who was later struck off. But it sparked an international slump in vaccinations. 'Lingering questions' Benjamin Kasstan-Dabush, a medical anthropologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told AFP there are still 'lingering questions around the Wakefield era'. He talked to parents who had delayed vaccinating their children, finding reasons included life events and difficulty getting health appointments, but also misinformation. 'We're obviously talking about a different generation of parents, who might be engaging with that Wakefield legacy through social media, through the internet, and of course through Kennedy,' he said. US President Donald Trump appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr as health secretary despite his promotion of anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. Kennedy fired all 17 experts on a key vaccine advisory panel and appointed a scientist who warned against COVID-19 jabs. In the United States, 'misinformation is being produced in the highest echelons of the Trump administration', which 'circulates across the internet', Kasstan-Dabush said. In a sign of how narratives spread, a Telegram group airing conspiracies called Liverpool TPR, which has around 2,000 members, regularly posts links to anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense once chaired by Kennedy. In the past few weeks the UK Health Security Agency has amplified its social media coverage on vaccinations, a spokesman said. In a video in response to the reported death, Vanessa Saliba, a consultant epidemiologist, explained the MMR jab protects others, including those 'receiving treatment like chemotherapy that can weaken or wipe out their immunity'. Take-up of the MMR jab needs to be 95 percent for herd immunity, according to the World Health Organisation. The UK has never hit this target. In Liverpool, uptake for both doses is only around 74 percent and below 50 percent in some areas, according to Ashton, while the UK rate is 84 percent. After Wakefield's autism claims, confirmed measles cases topped 2,000 in England and Wales in 2012 before dropping. But last year, cases soared again. The same trend is happening in other countries. Europe last year reported the highest number of cases in over 25 years; the United States has recorded its worst measles epidemic in over 30 years. Canada, which officially eradicated measles in 1998, has registered more than 3,500 cases this year. An Ontario infectious diseases doctor, Alon Vaisman, told AFP: 'You're fighting against the wall of disinformation and lies.'
France 24
2 days ago
- Health
- France 24
UK battles anti-vax misinformation after child's death
Measles is a highly infectious disease that can cause serious complications. It is preventable through double MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) jabs in early childhood. Health Secretary Wes Streeting on July 14 confirmed to parliament that a child had died in the UK of measles. No details have been released, but The Sunday Times and Liverpool Echo newspapers reported the child had been severely ill with measles and other serious health problems in Alder Hey hospital in the northwestern city. Anti-vaxxers quickly posted unconfirmed claims about the death on social media. One British influencer, Ellie Grey, who has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, posted a video denying the child died from measles. "Measles isn't this deadly disease... it's not dangerous," she said. Grey criticised Alder Hey for posting a video "really, really pushing and manipulating parents into getting the MMR vaccine". Her video was reposted by another British influencer, Kate Shemirani, a struck-off ex-nurse who posts health conspiracy theories. "No vaccine has ever been proven safe and no vaccine has ever been proven effective," Shemirani claimed falsely. Liverpool's public health chief Matthew Ashton attacked those "spreading misinformation and disinformation about childhood immunisations" in the Echo newspaper, saying "they need to take a very long, hard look at themselves." "For those of you that don't know, measles is a really nasty virus," he said in a video, adding that the jab is a way of "protecting yourself and your loved ones". Alder Hey said it has treated 17 children with measles since June. It posted a video in which a paediatric infectious diseases consultant, Andrew McArdle, addresses measles "myths", including that the MMR jab causes autism. This false claim comes from a debunked 1998 study by a British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, who was later struck off. But it sparked an international slump in vaccinations. 'Lingering questions' Benjamin Kasstan-Dabush, a medical anthropologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told AFP there are still "lingering questions around the Wakefield era". He talked to parents who had delayed vaccinating their children, finding reasons included life events and difficulty getting health appointments, but also misinformation. "We're obviously talking about a different generation of parents, who might be engaging with that Wakefield legacy through social media, through the internet, and of course through Kennedy," he said. US President Donald Trump appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr as health secretary despite his promotion of anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. Kennedy fired all 17 experts on a key vaccine advisory panel and appointed a scientist who warned against Covid jabs. In the United States, "misinformation is being produced in the highest echelons of the Trump administration", which "circulates across the internet", Kasstan-Dabush said. In a sign of how narratives spread, a Telegram group airing conspiracies called Liverpool TPR, which has around 2,000 members, regularly posts links to anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense once chaired by Kennedy. In the past few weeks the UK Health Security Agency has amplified its social media coverage on vaccinations, a spokesman said. In a video in response to the reported death, Vanessa Saliba, a consultant epidemiologist, explained the MMR jab protects others, including those "receiving treatment like chemotherapy that can weaken or wipe out their immunity". Take-up of the MMR jab needs to be 95 percent for herd immunity, according to the World Health Organisation. The UK has never hit this target. In Liverpool, uptake for both doses is only around 74 percent and below 50 percent in some areas, according to Ashton, while the UK rate is 84 percent. After Wakefield's autism claims, confirmed measles cases topped 2,000 in England and Wales in 2012 before dropping. But last year, cases soared again. The same trend is happening in other countries. Europe last year reported the highest number of cases in over 25 years; the United States has recorded its worst measles epidemic in over 30 years. Canada, which officially eradicated measles in 1998, has registered more than 3,500 cases this year. © 2025 AFP
NZ Herald
2 days ago
- Health
- NZ Herald
UK battles anti-vax misinformation after child's death
One British influencer, Ellie Grey, who has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, posted a video denying that the child died from measles. 'Measles isn't this deadly disease ... it's not dangerous,' she said. Grey criticised Alder Hey for posting a video 'really, really pushing and manipulating parents into getting the MMR vaccine'. Her video was reposted by another British influencer, Kate Shemirani, a struck-off ex-nurse who posts health conspiracy theories. 'No vaccine has ever been proven safe and no vaccine has ever been proven effective,' Shemirani claimed falsely. Liverpool's public health chief Matthew Ashton attacked those 'spreading misinformation and disinformation about childhood immunisations' in the Echo newspaper, saying 'they need to take a very long, hard look at themselves'. 'For those of you that don't know, measles is a really nasty virus,' he said in a video, adding that the jab is a way of 'protecting yourself and your loved ones'. Alder Hey said it has treated 17 children with measles since June. It posted a video in which a paediatric infectious diseases consultant, Andrew McArdle, addresses measles 'myths', including that the MMR jab causes autism. This false claim comes from a debunked 1998 study by a British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, who was later struck off. But it sparked an international slump in vaccinations. 'Lingering questions' Benjamin Kasstan-Dabush, a medical anthropologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told AFP there are still 'lingering questions around the Wakefield era'. He talked to parents who had delayed vaccinating their children, finding reasons included life events and difficulty getting health appointments, but also misinformation. 'We're obviously talking about a different generation of parents, who might be engaging with that Wakefield legacy through social media, through the internet, and of course through Kennedy,' he said. US President Donald Trump appointed Robert F. Kennedy jnr as Health Secretary despite his promotion of anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. Kennedy fired all 17 experts on a key vaccine advisory panel and appointed a scientist who warned against Covid jabs. In the US, 'misinformation is being produced in the highest echelons of the Trump Administration', which 'circulates across the internet', Kasstan-Dabush said. In a sign of how narratives spread, a Telegram group airing conspiracies called Liverpool TPR, which has around 2000 members, regularly posts links to anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defence, once chaired by Kennedy. In the past few weeks, the UK Health Security Agency has amplified its social media coverage on vaccinations, a spokesman said. In a video in response to the reported death, Vanessa Saliba, a consultant epidemiologist, explained that the MMR jab protects others, including those 'receiving treatment like chemotherapy that can weaken or wipe out their immunity'. Take-up of the MMR jab needs to be 95% for herd immunity, according to the World Health Organisation. The UK has never hit this target. In Liverpool, uptake for both doses is only around 74% and below 50% in some areas, according to Ashton, while the UK rate is 84%. After Wakefield's autism claims, confirmed measles cases topped 2000 in England and Wales in 2012 before dropping. But last year, cases soared again. The same trend is happening in other countries. Europe last year reported the highest number of cases in over 25 years; the US has recorded its worst measles epidemic in over 30 years. Canada, which officially eradicated measles in 1998, has registered more than 3500 cases this year. An Ontario infectious diseases doctor, Alon Vaisman, told AFP: 'You're fighting against the wall of disinformation and lies'. -Agence France-Presse
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
UK battles anti-vax misinformation after child's death
A child's death from measles has sparked urgent calls from British public health officials to get children vaccinated, as the UK faces an onslaught of misinformation on social media, much of it from the United States. Measles is a highly infectious disease that can cause serious complications. It is preventable through double MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) jabs in early childhood. Health Secretary Wes Streeting on July 14 confirmed to parliament that a child had died in the UK of measles. No details have been released, but The Sunday Times and Liverpool Echo newspapers reported the child had been severely ill with measles and other serious health problems in Alder Hey hospital in the northwestern city. Anti-vaxxers quickly posted unconfirmed claims about the death on social media. One British influencer, Ellie Grey, who has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, posted a video denying the child died from measles. "Measles isn't this deadly disease... it's not dangerous," she said. Grey criticised Alder Hey for posting a video "really, really pushing and manipulating parents into getting the MMR vaccine". Her video was reposted by another British influencer, Kate Shemirani, a struck-off ex-nurse who posts health conspiracy theories. "No vaccine has ever been proven safe and no vaccine has ever been proven effective," Shemirani claimed falsely. Liverpool's public health chief Matthew Ashton attacked those "spreading misinformation and disinformation about childhood immunisations" in the Echo newspaper, saying "they need to take a very long, hard look at themselves." "For those of you that don't know, measles is a really nasty virus," he said in a video, adding that the jab is a way of "protecting yourself and your loved ones". Alder Hey said it has treated 17 children with measles since June. It posted a video in which a paediatric infectious diseases consultant, Andrew McArdle, addresses measles "myths", including that the MMR jab causes autism. This false claim comes from a debunked 1998 study by a British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, who was later struck off. But it sparked an international slump in vaccinations. - 'Lingering questions' - Benjamin Kasstan-Dabush, a medical anthropologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told AFP there are still "lingering questions around the Wakefield era". He talked to parents who had delayed vaccinating their children, finding reasons included life events and difficulty getting health appointments, but also misinformation. "We're obviously talking about a different generation of parents, who might be engaging with that Wakefield legacy through social media, through the internet, and of course through Kennedy," he said. US President Donald Trump appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr as health secretary despite his promotion of anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. Kennedy fired all 17 experts on a key vaccine advisory panel and appointed a scientist who warned against Covid jabs. In the United States, "misinformation is being produced in the highest echelons of the Trump administration", which "circulates across the internet", Kasstan-Dabush said. In a sign of how narratives spread, a Telegram group airing conspiracies called Liverpool TPR, which has around 2,000 members, regularly posts links to anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense once chaired by Kennedy. In the past few weeks the UK Health Security Agency has amplified its social media coverage on vaccinations, a spokesman said. In a video in response to the reported death, Vanessa Saliba, a consultant epidemiologist, explained the MMR jab protects others, including those "receiving treatment like chemotherapy that can weaken or wipe out their immunity". Take-up of the MMR jab needs to be 95 percent for herd immunity, according to the World Health Organisation. The UK has never hit this target. In Liverpool, uptake for both doses is only around 74 percent and below 50 percent in some areas, according to Ashton, while the UK rate is 84 percent. After Wakefield's autism claims, confirmed measles cases topped 2,000 in England and Wales in 2012 before dropping. But last year, cases soared again. The same trend is happening in other countries. Europe last year reported the highest number of cases in over 25 years; the United States has recorded its worst measles epidemic in over 30 years. Canada, which officially eradicated measles in 1998, has registered more than 3,500 cases this year.
