In the last year, in Europe, 5,770 cases of measles (ECDC), while those of whooping cough increased tenfold. The Italian Society of General Medicine and Primary Care launches an appeal for the extension of childhood vaccination coverage and for booster shots for adults, essential for community immunity. “The booster vaccination against measles is indicated for healthcare workers, fragile patients, women planning a pregnancy. All adults must also carry out a booster shot against diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis every ten years” explains Alessandro Rossi, President of SIMG
Rome, 29 April 2024 – Measles and whooping cough are on the rise in Europe and Italy is no exception. The data published by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) on the occasion of the European Immunization Week, as well as those collected by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità for Italy, show an increase in infections in every age group and a decline in vaccinations.
These infections can thus circulate, leaving fragile subjects exposed in a context where community immunity – guaranteed by wide vaccination coverage – does not materialise. For this reason, the Italian Society of General Practitioners and Primary Care Doctors (SIMG) joins the Italian Society of Paediatrics in inviting children to be vaccinated for all vaccine-preventable diseases and adds that it is essential for adults to comply with the necessary reminders.
In the last two years, cases of measles have increased 60-fold in Europe and cases of whooping cough have increased tenfold.
Measles cases have increased 60-fold in the WHO European Region; as reported by the ECDC, they have been increasing in several European Union countries since 2023. Between March 2023 and the end of February 2024, at least 5,770 cases of measles were reported, with at least 5 deaths. The highest risk is for children under one year old, who are too young to be vaccinated, and for fragile immunocompromised individuals who cannot receive the vaccine.
These populations should be protected by community immunity: measles spreads very easily, so vaccination coverage of at least 95% of the population is essential to interrupt transmission. Furthermore, since mid-2023 – as the ECDC notes – an increase in whooping cough cases has also been reported in several EU and European Economic Area countries, with preliminary data indicating cases more than tenfold in 2023 and 2024 compared to 2022 and 2021.
In Italy, as shown by the ISS, from 1 January to 31 March 2024, 213 cases of measles were notified (34 in January, 93 in February, 86 in March). 88% were unvaccinated at the time of infection. 56 cases (26.3%) reported at least one complication, including 23 cases of pneumonia and one case of encephalitis in a young, unvaccinated adult.
SIMG’s appeal: booster vaccinations for adults too
“The worrying numbers relating to the spread of measles and whooping cough lead us to strongly recommend the relevant vaccinations not only for children, for whom there are appointments on the vaccination calendar, but also for adults who are not covered or who need a booster. – explains Alessandro Rossi, President of SIMG – Vaccination, in fact, is not only an individual protection, but also concerns subjects who cannot receive it due to immunocompromised problems and risk contracting measles suffering serious, sometimes lethal consequences, just as is happening ”.
“The booster vaccination against measles is indicated for healthcare personnel, for fragile patients, for women planning a pregnancy. As regards whooping cough, every ten years the adult must undergo the administration of a triple dose of vaccine against diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis. In addition to tetanus, which causes some deaths every year, it is necessary to protect oneself against whooping cough, which causes serious risks especially for newborns, heart patients, those with serious respiratory diseases and diabetics. The risk is also to confuse the pathology with a prolonged cough, underestimating the dangerous consequences”, concludes Rossi.
