FOI Ref: FOI/2022/3840
You asked
1) How many deaths have been recorded as a result of the wild measles, mumps and rubella virus infections between 2010 and 2021?
2) How many deaths have been recorded as a result of the MMR vaccines, specifically Priorix and MMRVaxPro, between 2010 and 2021?
We said
Thank you for your enquiry.
ONS are responsible for the production of mortality statistics for England and Wales, this is based on the information collected at death registration.
Deaths as a result of MMR
The conditions mentioned on the death certificate are coded using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). From all of these causes an underlying cause of death is selected using ICD-10 coding rules. The underlying cause of death is defined by WHO as:
a) the disease or injury that initiated the train of events directly leading to death, or
b) the circumstances of the accident or violence that produced the fatal injury
Deaths where the underlying cause was Measles, Mumps or Rubella are defined using the following ICD-10 codes:
Measles 'B05'
Mumps 'B26'
Rubella 'B06'
The information you have requested is available via NOMIS webservice which contains death registration data for the calendar years 2013 to 2020 for England and Wales.
Please follow these instructions to use the service:
- Select the geography (England and Wales, regional or by local authority).
- Select Age - All ages or 5 year age bands.
- Select Gender - Total or Male/Female
- Select rates - All deaths, rates or percentage of population for example.
- Select cause of death (ICD10 code search is available). 'B05' and 'B26'
Select format (Excel or CSV for example)
Death registrations by underlying cause (ICD-10 code), sex, age group for England and Wales for 2001 to 2020, are available in our 21st Century Mortality publication.
Detailed cause of death information is not yet available for deaths registered in 2021 because data are still provisional. Information for 2021 will be released in our Deaths Registered Series and NOMIS in July 2022.
We can create a custom output of 2021 data for you, however, please note that because data for 2021 are still provisional, figures may be an underestimate due to registration delays.
Please note, special extracts and tabulations of mortality data for England and Wales are available to order (subject to legal frameworks, disclosure control, resources and agreements of costs, where appropriate).
Such enquiries would fall outside of the Freedom of Information regime and should be made to: Health.Data@ons.gov.uk.
Deaths a result of the MMR vaccinations
We do not hold information on vaccinations as this information is not recorded on the death certificate, nor we do hold information on NHS care plans or vaccination records. NHS Digital may be better placed to provide this information. They can be contacted via email at enquiries@nhsdigital.nhs.uk.