Measles outbreak warning

Five measles cases have been officially confirmed and another 15 are "probable".

Today health chiefs warned more children who haven't been vaccinated could also be struck down by the highly infectious disease which can lead to potentially fatal conditions.

It is thought as many as 10 cases are in north Sheffield, with the others in Barnsley and Rotherham. They involve three separate groups of children ranging in age from just three months to 12 years.

None of the youngsters have been immunised by the MMR vaccine, leaving them susceptible to catching measles.

The cases in Sheffield are the first affecting any city child in the last five years. An outbreak of measles in Doncaster last year affected more than 50 children.

Measles can lead to potentially deadly conditions including pneumonia and meningitis. It can trigger miscarriages in pregnant woman and can be fatal to children with leukaemia and cancer who have weakened immune systems.

Dr Rosy McNaught, consultant in communicable disease control at the South Yorkshire Health Protection Agency, warned more children who have not been vaccinated are at risk of getting the disease.

She said: "Measles is the most infectious childhood disease, more infectious than chickenpox. It is spreading in the community and cherry-picks the children who have not been immunised. If a child has not been immunised all others in the family will get it."

Dr McNaught is now appealing to parents who have not had their children vaccinated to go to their GP and request an injection which protects against measles, mumps and rubella.

The outbreak involves three groups where, in each case, one child has caught the disease and then spread it to other children or playmates.

There are concerns more cases could still be diagnosed as the disease takes days before it shows up as illness.

Dr McNaught added: "Although, thankfully, the schools have broken up, we still have potential for it to spread as children are spending a lot of time playing with family and friends."

Claims the MMR vaccine could lead to autism meant some parents have refused to allow their babies to be injected. But experts say the claims are unfounded and, in Sheffield, as many as 85 per cent of youngsters are having the inoculation free on the NHS.

The remaining 15 per cent of unvaccinated youngsters are at risk. Children who have had the MMR jab can still get measles but are likely to get it in a much milder form.

Letters have been sent to all family doctors in Sheffield, Rotherham and Barnsley to alert them to the outbreak.