title: The effect of measles on health-related quality of life: a patient-based survey.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Measles is a highly contagious and potentially fatal illness preventable through vaccination. Outbreaks in the UK and many other European countries have been increasing over recent years, with over 3,207 laboratory-confirmed cases reported by Public Health England from January 2012 to the end of June 2013. To aid rational decision making regarding measles control versus other use of healthcare resources, it is important to measure the severity of measles in units that are comparable to other diseases. The standard metric for this in the UK is the quality-adjust life year (QALY). To our knowledge, the impact of measles on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in terms of QALYs has not been quantified.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Individuals with confirmed measles were sent questionnaires requesting information on the short-term impact of the illness on their HRQoL using the EuroQol EQ-5D-3L questionnaire. HRQoL was reported for the day the questionnaire was received, the worst day of infection and at follow-up three weeks later. 507 questionnaires were sent to individuals with confirmed measles with 203 returned (40%). The majority of respondents were not vaccinated. The mean time off work or school was 9.6 days. The mean duration of perceived illness was 13.8 days. The mean number of QALYs lost was 0.019 (equivalent to 6.9 days). The overall burden of disease in terms of QALYs lost in England based on the total number of confirmed cases in the twelve month period from 1st June 2012 was estimated to be 44.2 QALYs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The short-term impact of measles infection on HRQoL is substantial, both at the level of the individual patient and in terms of the overall disease burden. This is the first attempt to quantify QALY-loss due to measles at a population level, and provides important parameters to guide future intervention and control measures.
authors.affiliation: Centre for the Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Dominic
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Thorrington
authors.affiliation: Public Health England (Colindale), London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ramsay
authors.affiliation: Public Health England (Colindale), London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Albert Jan
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: van Hoek
authors.affiliation: Centre for the Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: W John
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Edmunds
authors.affiliation: Public Health England (Cheshire and Merseyside), Liverpool, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vivancos
authors.affiliation: Public Health England (Colindale), London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Antoaneta
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bukasa
authors.affiliation: Centre for the Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Eames
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006296:Health Services; D006306:Health Surveys; D006798:Housing; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008457:Measles / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014611:Vaccination; D055815:Young Adult