HC Deb 25 June 2003 vol 407 cc829-30W
Mr. Paul Marsden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children suffered from(a) chickenpox, (b) measles, (c) mumps, (d) rubella and (e) whooping cough in each year since 1997. [120102]

Miss Melanie Johnson

The numbers of laboratory confirmed cases of measles, mumps, rubella, and pertussis (whooping cough) between 1997 and 2002 are shown in the table. Notifications (clinical diagnosis only) of whooping cough are also given. The data for 2002 are provisional and therefore subject to change.

Laboratory confirmed cases
Year measles mumps rubella pertussis Notifications of whooping cough
1997 177 180 99 715 2,989
1998 56 118 122 375 1,577
1999 94 366 161 330 1,139
2000 100 697 60 199 712
2001 71 767 41 298 888
20021 308 482 63 245 882
1 Provisional data

Chickenpox is not a notifiable disease and laboratory reports are not available. Since chickenpox is so common in childhood, 90 per cent. of adults are immune.