EFFECT OF MEASLES ANTIBODIES IN THE BREAST MILK AND SERA OF MOTHER ON SEROCONVERSION TO MEASLES VACCINATION.

The objective of this study was to determine the role of the presence of measles antibodies (MV) in the serum and breast milk of lactating mothers. Blood and breast milk samples were collected pre and 8 week post vaccination mothers and their 9-month-old children brought to the Institute of Child-Health, from University College Hospital, Ibadan for routine measles vaccination. The samples were assayed for the presence of MV antibodies using the haemagglutination inhibition method. The result showed that 2.0% of the 396 children had MV antibodies in their sera prior to vaccination as against 20.2% of their mothers in either breast milk or sera. All the eight children positive for MV antibodies pre-vaccination were from seronegative mothers. However there was no statistical significant difference in the seroconversion rate between children from seropositive mothers and those from seronegative (p > 0.05). There was also no evidence of interference with seroconversion. The low seroversion rate observed in the study could therefore be attributed to the low potency of the vaccines used rather than the presence or absence of MV antibodies in the sera or breast milk of mothers.