title: Summer music and arts festivals as hot spots for measles transmission: experience from England and Wales, June to October 2016.
abstract: We report 52 cases of measles linked to music and arts festivals in England and Wales, between mid-June and mid-October 2016. Nearly half were aged 15 to 19 years. Several individuals who acquired measles at one festival subsequently attended another festival while infectious, resulting in multiple interlinked outbreaks. Transmission within festivals resulted in a geographical spread of cases nationally as well as internationally, which presents particular challenges for measles control.
authors.affiliation: National Infection Service, Public Health England, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: le Polain de Waroux
authors.affiliation: Immunisation, Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, National Infection Service, Public Health England, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Saliba
authors.affiliation: Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre and Vaccine Preventable Disease Programme, Public Health Wales, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cottrell
authors.affiliation: Public Health England South West, Public Health England, Exeter, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Nick
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Young
authors.affiliation: Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre and Vaccine Preventable Disease Programme, Public Health Wales, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Malorie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.affiliation: Immunisation, Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, National Infection Service, Public Health England, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Antoaneta
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bukasa
authors.affiliation: Immunisation, Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, National Infection Service, Public Health England, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ramsay
authors.affiliation: Virus Reference Department, National Infection Service, Public Health England, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.affiliation: Immunisation, Hepatitis and Blood Safety Department, National Infection Service, Public Health England, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Gayatri
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Amirthalingam
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission; D003441:Crowding; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D006693:Holidays; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008457:Measles / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009146:Music; D011159:Population Surveillance / Q000379:methods; D014852:Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Europe; United Kingdom; airborne infections; epidemiology; mass gatherings; measles; measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine; outbreaks; vaccines and immunisation; viral infections