Children in the UK receive two doses of the Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccine before entry to primary school. This currently occurs at 12-15 months and 3-4 years as part of the routine immunisation schedule

Contraindications to MMR

• severe immunosuppression
• allergy to neomycin
• children who have received another live vaccine by injection within 4 weeks
• pregnancy should be avoided for at least 1 month following vaccination
• immunoglobulin therapy within the past 3 months (there may be no immune response to the measles vaccine if antibodies are present)

Adverse effects

• malaise, fever and rash may occur after the first dose of MMR. This typically occurs after 5-10 days and lasts around 2-3 days

The Green Book recommends allowing 3 months between doses to maximise the response rate. A period of 1 month is considered adequate if the child is greater than 10 years of age. In an urgent situation (e.g. an outbreak at the child's school) then a shorter period of 1 month can be used in younger children.