Measles and Rubella elimination and current status in Korea

In Hyekyung, Jung Yeon Haw, Park Kyeong Eun, Seo DongHee, Jung Chae-Won, Om Jieun, Lee Chae Jin, Park Hye Kyung
Division of Infectious Disease Surveillance, Center for Infectious Disease Control, KCDC

A measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) combination vaccine was first adopted to the national immunization program in 1983, and was expanded to a 2-dose schedule in 1997; the first dose at 12-15 months of age and the second dose at 4-6 years of age.
Even with the routine use of 2-dose MMR, measles control level has not been easily achieved and remained a public health concern. Between 2000 and 2001, there was a large nationwide outbreak that caused more than 55 thousand measles cases. To control the outbreak, a nationwide measles and rubella vaccine (MR) catch-up campaign, the implementation of a policy on vaccination certification as a school entry requirement, and an enhanced measles surveillance system were instituted in the country.
As a result, the WHO Regional Verification Commission for Measles and Rubella Elimination (RVC) in the Western Pacific certified that measles had been eliminated in the Republic of Korea in 2014. In addition, the RVC also verified that the Republic of Korea had achieved interruption of rubella virus transmission for at least 36 months in the presence of high-quality surveillance and supporting genotypic evidence in 2017.
Nonetheless, measles and rubella remain a public health problem in other parts of the world, and outbreaks of these infectious diseases in Korea can be effected by people who got infected in other countries. To keep in the measles and rubella elimination state, Korea will continue to maintain more vigilant epidemiological and laboratory-based surveillance, along with high routine vaccination coverage for MMR through public-private partnership.

Keywords: Measles, Rubella, Elimination