Manchester doctors reporting more suspected measles infections than almost anywhere in country

Rising cases of measles have been confirmed by lab tests in the north west - as GPs in Manchester report more suspected infections than almost anywhere else in the country. The West Midlands remains the epicentre for the measles outbreak, however, data shows 'clusters' are appearing in other regions now, including in the north west where there have been 43 lab-confirmed cases.

The majority of infections in the north west have been in children under the age of 10 (27) - with two identified in children under the age of one - but there have also been 11 infections in adults over the age of 25. Tests have been carried out to confirm each is, in fact, measles as some symptoms are similar to those of other illnesses.

Nationally, figures released by the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) show 69 new cases of measles were confirmed in the last week, bringing the total number of positive infections since October 1 up to 581. There were 17 positive test results in October, 42 in November, 158 in December, 268 last month, and 165 so far in February.

While the UKHSA says case numbers have 'stabilised' in the West Midlands, it has expressed concern for the north west and London. Of 183 cases in the past four weeks, around one in five (19 per cent) were in the North West and one in seven in London (14 per cent).

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The majority of cases seen so far (65 per cent) have been in children under the age of 10, but around a quarter (27 per cent) were in young people and adults over the age of 15. The UKHSA blames the spread on low take-up of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine in parts of the country.

In England as a whole, 92.5 per cent of children had