Which Measles Vaccine Should You Get?

You probably know that a measles vaccine can help prevent you and your child from getting measles, but do you know which measles vaccine to get?

History of Measles Containing Vaccines

Although we typically associate getting a measles vaccine with an MMR vaccine, you have always had a bit of a choice when you received a measles containing vaccine.

Sure, if you wanted protection against measles, then you could have gotten the MMR vaccine, which combined protected against measles, mumps, and rubella since it was first licensed in 1971. It has been available in its current form, MMR-II, since 1978.

But we used to also have more measles containing vaccines, including:

• a Measles-Smallpox combination vaccine (discontinued 1972)

• M-R-Vax – a measles and rubella combo (discontinued 1978)

• M-M-Vax – a measles and mumps combo (discontinued 1978)

• Attenuvax – the separate measles vaccine (discontinued 2009)

And although some vaccine hesitant parents might welcome the return of a separate measles vaccine, know that these vaccines were discontinued because they simply became obsolete.

Which Measles Vaccine Should You Get?

And now what do we have?

In addition to Priorix and the MMR-II vaccines, other measles containing vaccines used worldwide include the MMR vaccines Timovax and Tresivac and several MR (measles-rubella) vaccines. And there are others that are made mostly for use in just one country, like in China and Russia.

In addition to the MMR-II vaccine manufactured by Merck, we have:

• ProQuad, the combination MMRV vaccine, which adds protection against chickenpox (also Merck) and which can be given to children between the ages of 12 months through 12 years (licensed in 2005)

• another MMR vaccine, Priorix, manufactured by GSK (licensed in 2022)

So which one should you get?

Priorix vs. MMR-II Vaccines

In general, MMR-II and Priorix are considered interchangeable and there is no recommendation or a preference of getting one or the other.

So your decision is might really be about whether to get ProQuad instead of separate MMR (either MMR-II or Priorix) and chickenpox vaccines.

And if ProQuad is available, that decision comes down to if you want to save your child an extra shot! Keep in mind that this combination does slightly increase the risk of febrile seizures for younger toddlers, so many pediatricians reserve it for older kids, at the four-year visit.

And know that while Priorix was just recently licensed in the United States, it has been used internationally in over 100 countries since 1997.

Most importantly, make the choice to get vaccinated and protected against all of these vaccine preventable diseases, no matter which vaccines you choose to get!

More on Measles Vaccines

• Recommended Measles Vaccine Ages

• Why Are You Still Worried About the MMR Vaccine?

• That Time a Chiropractor in Texas Got Measles

• News & Views: What Should I Know About the New MMR Vaccine, PRIORIX?

• FDA - MMR-II (including vaccine package insert)

• FDA - Priorix (including vaccine package insert)

• FDA - ProQuad (including vaccine package insert)