British baby dies from whooping cough as vaccination rates fall

"A baby in the UK has died from whooping cough, marking the first such death in the country this year. The infant's mother had not been vaccinated against the highly infectious disease, which affects the lungs and airways. This death occurred as vaccination rates among children and pregnant women in the UK have fallen to their lowest levels in 15 years."

"Almost one in five children starting primary school this week in England are not fully protected from diseases including whooping cough, polio, tetanus and diphtheria. This puts the UK well below the World Health Organization's 95% threshold for herd immunity for all childhood vaccines. Only 83.7% of five-year-olds have received both doses of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, while uptake of the four-in-one preschool booster vaccine which protects against polio, whooping cough, tetanus and diphtheria stood at 81.4% among five-year-olds in England."

An infant thought to be under one year old became ill and died of whooping cough between March and June, and the child's mother had not been vaccinated. Whooping cough is highly infectious, affects the lungs and airways, and can be fatal for very young babies. Vaccination rates among children and pregnant women in the UK have fallen to 15-year lows, leaving almost one in five children starting primary school not fully protected. Only 83.7% of five-year-olds have received two MMR doses and 81.4% have the four-in-one preschool booster, below the WHO 95% herd immunity threshold. The NHS will add chickenpox vaccination to the schedule next year by introducing MMRV.

Read at www.theguardian.com