Sandeep Acharya, Siobhan Barry and Kevin O’Grady give an overview of a fast-spreading problem for the dental team.

Measles is a highly infectious viral disease. Management is often supportive, with analgesia and rest recommended. Measles can also have severe complications in young infants, pregnant women, and immunosuppressed individuals (UK Health Security Agency, 2024a).

Cases of measles have been rare since the introduction of its immunisation (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2024). However, there has been an increase in cases of measles in England, with over 1,100 laboratory-confirmed cases between October 2023 and April 2024. Over 60 per cent of these cases occurred in children below the age of 11 (UK Health Security Agency, 2024b). This may be due to the reduction in vaccine uptake and increase in vaccine hesitancy that has occurred in the past few years (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2024).

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