AN OUTBREAK OF MEASLES IN ORTHODOX JEWISH COMMUNITIES IN ANTWERP, BELGIUM, 2007-2008: DIFFERENT REASONS FOR ACCUMULATION OF SUSCEPTIBLES.

Monday, 30th of September 2013

[source]Euro Surveillance[|source]

In this article, Lernout and colleagues document a measles outbreak in Antwerp that was linked to another in the same communities in the United Kingdom and in Israel.  In this outbreak, transmission of the virus within the Jewish communities occurred mainly at school, with further spread to the non-protected younger siblings at home. The high MMR1 coverage in the general population and the socially isolated way of life of ultra-orthodox Jewish communities avoided spread of the outbreak to the whole town or country.  Six out of the eight affected non-Jewish cases were either too young or too old to have taken part in the routine vaccination programme. 

 

This article reports that there were no religious reasons for opposition to vaccination. Similar to findings of a qualitative study among the orthodox Jewish communities in London, many families had partially immunized their children. Cultural factors (routine vaccination schedule started later and with a longer interval between vaccines, large families with omission of vaccination for one or two children) and lack of information or misperception of possible side effects or interaction with other diseases were important reasons why children did not get a first dose of MMR vaccine during their childhood. Sadly, this report identifies some pediatricians who actually advise their clients not to vaccinate. More details are available at: http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=19087

 

Abstract

From August 2007 to May 2008, an outbreak of at least 137 cases of measles occurred in some orthodox Jewish communities in Antwerp, Belgium. The outbreak was linked to outbreaks in the same communities in the United Kingdom and in Israel. The reasons for this outbreak were diverse: cultural factors, misinformation on vaccination by some medical doctors and the lack of a catch-up vaccination programme in private Jewish schools. The identification of smaller susceptible groups for measles transmission and vaccination of these groups represent a major challenge for the measles elimination programme.