Public Health England (PHE) has announced that rubella (German measles) susceptibility screening in pregnancy will end in England on 1 April 2016. The decision to stop screening follows a review of evidence by the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) in 2003 and 2012.
On both occasions the Committee found that screening for rubella susceptibility during pregnancy no longer met the criteria for a screening programme and should be discontinued because:
- Rubella infection levels in the UK are so low they are defined as eliminated by the World Health Organization.
- Rubella infection in pregnancy is very rare.
- Being fully immunised with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine before becoming pregnant is more effective in protecting women against rubella in pregnancy.
- The screening test used can potentially give inaccurate results and cause unnecessary stress among women.
The decision to end screening for rubella susceptibility in pregnancy has been made possible by the high levels of vaccination rates achieved through the MMR immunisation programme. Figures in England during 2014 and 2015 show that 91.5% of children aged up to two years had received at least one MMR vaccination; with 94.5% having received at least one dose of MMR by five years.
