Measles signs and symptoms as London to be hit by surge of deadly disease

Health bosses are warning families about the danger of measles amid fears London could see tens of thousands of cases.

Mathematical calculations suggest an outbreak could affect between 40,000 and 160,000 people, warns the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). London has lower levels of vaccination leaving it more at risk, whereas higher levels of immunisation in the rest of the UK means there is a "low risk" of a large epidemic elsewhere.

But the UKHSA said there was an "urgent" need to vaccinate children, teenagers and young adults amid the theoretical risk. Levels of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccinations in the UK are at their lowest level in a decade, with around one in ten children not protected by the time they start primary school.

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Dr Vanessa Saliba, a consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: “Measles can be a serious infection that can lead to complications especially in young children and those with weakened immune systems. Due to longstanding suboptimal vaccine uptake there is now a very real risk of seeing big outbreaks in London.”

Measles is a highly infectious disease that can lead to serious problems such as pneumonia, meningitis, and on rare occasions, long-term disability or death. Children are offered the first dose of the MMR vaccine which protects against measles, mumps and rubella when they turn one-years-old and the second dose at three years and four months.

Official data published on Friday revealed a steady rise in measles cases this year, indicating a resurgence of the illness. Between 1 January and 30 June this year there have been 128 cases of measles, compared with 54 cases in the whole of