Triple MMR vaccine

Measles is a highly infectious viral illness. 

The virus is called paramyxovirus.

The disease is spread through droplet transmission.

The virus is containes in the millions of tiny droplets that come out of the nose and mouth when an infected person coughts or sneezes.

You can easily catch measles by breathing in these droplets or by touching something that the droplets have settled on and then putting your hands near your mouth. The virus can survive on surfaces for a few hours.

When inside the body, the virus multiplies in the back of the throat and lungs before spreading throughout your entire body.

People with measles are infectious from when the first symptoms develop until about four days after the rash first appears.

Initial symptoms of measles appear around 10 days after infection and disappear about 7-10 days later.

Initial symptoms include:

• swelling of glands in the cheeks/ neck and under jaw
• cold-like symptoms
• red eyes and sensitivity to light
• a fever

The initial symptoms of measles are then followed by a red-brown spotty rash that develops a few days later. The measles rash appears 2-4 days after the initial symptoms and lasts about a week. The spots start behing the ears, before spreadig outwards to the head, neck and rest of the body over the next few days. The spots start small but get quickly bigger and often join together. Similar-looking rashes may be mistaken for measles, but measles has a range of other symptoms too, not just a rash.

Ther is no specific treatment for measles, but the condition usually improves without treatment within 7-10 days.

Relieving symptoms

Controlling fever and relieving pain: paracetamol or ibuprofen can be used to reduce a high temperature and treat any aches or pains. Liquid paracetamol can be used for young children.

Fluids: may help reduce discomfort caused by coughing and are at risk of dehydration.

Sore eyes: gently clean away any crustiness around the eyelids and lashes and close your curtains.

Signs of a more serious problem can include:

• shortness of breath
• sharp chest pains
• coughing up blood
• drowsiness
• confusion
• convulsions

Common compliations:

• diarrhoea
• vomiting
• ear infection
• eye infection

Uncommon compliations:

• liver infection
• misalignment of the eyes
• meningitis

Rare compliations:

• serious eye disorders
• heart and nervous system problems
• a fatal brain complication - subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) 

Mumps is caused by the mumps virus, which belongs to a family f viruses known as paramoyxoviruses. These viruses are a common sourse of infection, particularly in children.

Mumps is spread through droplets of saliva that can be inhaled or picked up from surfaces and transferred into the mouth or nose.

When you get mumps, the virus moves from the respitory tract into the parotid glands, where it begins to reproduce (this causes the glands to swell.

The virus can also enter your cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which is the fluid that suround and protects your brain and spine. Once the virus has entrerd the CSF, it can spread to other parts of your bosy, such as your brain, pancreas, testicles and ovaries.

A person is most contagious a few days before the symptoms develop and for a few days afterwards.

The symptoms develop between days 14-25 after a person is infected with the mumps virus. The average incubation period is around 17 days.

Swelling of the parotid glands is the most common symptom of mumps. The parotid glands are a pair of glands responsible for producing saliva. They are located in wither side of your face, just below your ears. Both glands are usually affected by the swelling, although only one gland can be affected. The swelling can cause pain, tenderness and difficulty with swallowing.

More general symptoms often develop before the parotid glands swell, these can be:

• headache
• joint pain
• feeling sick
• dry mouth.

In 1-in3 cases, mumps doesn't cause any noticable symptoms.

There are several problems that often occur with mumps. These are rarely serious and usually improve as the infection passes. 

Common complications:

• swollen testicle
• swolen ovaries
• viral meningitis 
• pancreatitis.

Rare complications:

• encephalititis
• tempoary hearing loss.

Rubella is caused by a type of virus called a togavirus.

It is spread through droplets of moisture (refer back to mode of transmission of measles).

It can take 2-3 weeks for symptoms to develop. 

If you have rubella, you will be infectious to other people from 1 week before symptoms develop, and for up to 4 days after the rash first appears.

Some infected people will not develop any symptoms, but in those who do, a rash and swelling around the neck and head are common signs of the condition. 

Symptoms include:

• a red-pink skin rash made up of small spots 
• swollen glands around the head and neck
• sore eyes
• cold-like symptoms.

The symptoms of rubella usually only last a few days, but the glands may be swollen for several weeks.

Swollen lymph glands

Lymphn nodes are small lumps of tissue found throughout the body. They contain white blood cells that help fight bacteria and viruses. The lymph nodes swell before the rash appears and the swelling can last for several weeks after the rash is gone.

Thers is no specific treatment for rubella. The condition is usually mild and improves without threatment within 7-10 days. 

While the child has rubella, it's important to reduce the risk of spreading the infection to other people. In rare cases, rubella can cause serious problems in an unborn baby, so you should also try to avoid contact with pregnant women for 6 days from the start of the rash.

MMR is a safe and effective combined vaccine that protects against 3 seperate illnesses - measles, mumps and rubella - in a single injection. The full course of MMR vaccination requires two doses. 

MMR vaccine is given on the NHS as a single injection to babies as part of their routine vaccination schedule, usually within a month of their first birthday. They will then have a second injection before starting school, usually between the ages of 2 and 5. 

The vaccine contains weakened versions of live measles, mumps and rubella viruses. The vaccine works by triggering the iimmune system to produce antibodies against MMR. 

As there are 3 seperate vaccines within a single injection, different side effects can occur at different times. The side effects of the MMR vaccine are usually mild. It's important to remember that they're milder than the potential complications of MMR.

Side effects include:

• developing a mild form of measles that lasts for 2-3 days
• developing a mild form of mumps that lasts for a day or 2.