PARENTS in West Wales are being warned an outbreak of measles in Swansea is spreading to Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.
The Hywel Dda Health Board is supporting a Public Health Wales's plea for parents to ensure children are given two doses of the three-in-one measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine as cases across West Wales continue to rise.
More than 300 cases have been reported during the outbreak.
So far in 2013, there have been 23 cases across Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion compared to just five during the same period in 2012.
Nine are in the Llanelli, Gwendraeth and Ammanford area, three in Carmarthen, nine in Pembrokeshire and two in Ceredigion.
Letters are currently being sent to families in Llanelli and the Gwendraeth Valley.
Teresa Owen, director of public health for Hywel Dda Health Board said: "There is an ongoing outbreak of measles in West Wales.
"We cannot overemphasise the need for children to be vaccinated in order to control this outbreak.
"Even if your child has already had measles in the current outbreak or previous- ly, they still need to have MMR vaccine to get protection against mumps and rubella," she added.
Forty-two people have so far been hospitalised in Swansea.
Dr Marion Lyons, director of health protection for Public Health Wales, said: "Measles is such an infectious disease that around 90 per cent of unvaccinated people who come into contact with cases will catch it.
"You only need one or two people who haven't had the vaccination to put at risk babies, toddlers and anyone else who is vulnerable, such as children with leukaemia who cannot have the vaccination and also pregnant women who haven't been vaccinated.
"We cannot emphasise enough that measles is an illness that can kill, or leave people with permanent complications, including severe brain damage.
Public Health Wales has predicted the outbreak will continue into the summer months with serious impacts for children sitting exams such as GCSEs and A levels holiday plans may well also suffer.
Further information on measles is available at http://www.publichealthwales. org/measles
