title: Impact of the Australian Measles Control Campaign on immunity to measles and rubella.
abstract: To evaluate the impact of the 1998 Australian Measles Control Campaign on immunity to measles and rubella, 4400 opportunistically-collected sera, submitted to diagnostic laboratories across Australia from subjects aged 1-49 years, and 3000 from subjects aged 1-18 years, were tested before and after the campaign, respectively. The proportion of individuals aged 1-18 years who were immune to measles rose from 85% before, to 90% after, the campaign (P < 0.001). The greatest increase was in preschool (7%, P < 0.001) and primary school (10%, P < 0.001) children, who were actively targeted by the campaign. Rubella immunity in 1-18 year-olds rose from 83% to 91% (P < 0.0001), again with significant increases in preschool (4%, P = 0.002) and primary school (16%, P < 0.001) children. 94% of individuals aged 19-49 years were immune to rubella. These serosurveys confirm other evidence of the effectiveness of the Australian Measles Control Campaign and demonstrate the value of serosurveillance using opportunistically collected sera.
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance of Vaccine Preventable Diseases, Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children and University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Gilbert
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Escott
authors.forename: H F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Gidding
authors.forename: F M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Turnbull
authors.forename: T C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Heath
authors.forename: P B
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: McIntyre
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Burgess
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001315:Australia; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017589:Immunization Programs; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008457:Measles / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D008458:Measles Vaccine; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012409:Rubella / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D008458:Measles Vaccine