Mumps-Measles-Rubella Vaccine

The measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR), also known as triple viral, protects against diseases by three highly transmissible viruses. Measles is an acute febrile illness that causes skin damage and can lead to complications such as pneumonia, encephalitis and death. Mumps is a disease that causes fever and painful swelling of the salivary glands and can complicate with testicular involvement and viral meningitis. Rubella is a disease that causes low-grade fever, swollen lymph nodes behind the neck and ear, and skin lesions. In pregnant women, the disease can affect the fetus and cause miscarriage or malformation due to the so-called congenital rubella syndrome (which can lead to auditory, visual, neurological and cardiac involvement of the fetus). The MMR vaccine is a live attenuated virus and it is administered subcutaneously. Two doses are recommended, at 12 and 15 months of age. It is available as an MMR vaccine (first dose) and comprises the tetraviral vaccine (second dose) both in SUS and the quadruple viral vaccine (in the private health system).