In January 2026 in Italy, 84 cases of measles were reported to the national integrated measles and rubella surveillance system, of which 73 (86.9%) were laboratory-confirmed, 5 were probable cases, and 6 were possible cases, an increase compared to the 78 and 34 recorded in the same period in 2025 and 2024, respectively.
Three of the cases reported in the period (3.6%) are imported cases and 2 are related to imported cases.
"After two years of high incidence of measles cases in Italy, with 1,055 and 532 cases in 2024 and 2025 respectively, the year 2026 begins with a new increase in January with 84 cases”, according to the experts of the Infectious Diseases Department of the ISS. The virus continues to circulate in the country, especially among unvaccinated young adults.
There are 9 Regions/PPAA that have reported cases in 2026, but almost all of the cases (81/84; 96.4%) come from only 6 Regions (Lombardy, Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Puglia and Calabria). The median age of the reported cases is 28 years, however the highest incidence is observed in the 0-4 age group and 2 cases have been reported in children under one year of age. The vaccination status is known for 91.7% of the cases, the 90.9% were unvaccinated at the time of infection. More than a third of cases reported at least one complication. The most frequent complications were pneumonia and hepatitis/elevated transaminases. Among the reported cases, 5 are healthcare workers (of whom 4 were unvaccinated at the time of infection and 1 was vaccinated and had received two doses).
Europe measles 2025
In Europe, the ECDC recently reported, between 1 January and 31 December 2025, 30 EU/EEA countries reported 7,655 cases of measles and 8 deaths: 4 in France, 3 in Romania, and one in the Netherlands. Although the total number of infections in 2025 represents a significant decrease from the more than 35,000 cases in 2024, it is almost double the cases reported in 2023. The highest notification rates were observed in infants aged 18 and under. under one year of age (261.6 cases per million) and children aged 1 to 4 years (127.4 cases per million). 79.9% of cases were unvaccinated, 10.3% were vaccinated with one dose of measles vaccine, 7.9% were vaccinated with two doses, and 1.7% were vaccinated with an unknown number of doses.
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced at the end of January 2026 that Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Uzbekistan had re-established endemic measles transmission based on the number of cases recorded in 2024.
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