Irish holidaymakers are being urged to ensure they are vaccinated against measles before travelling this summer.

The warning comes as many European countries struggle to contain large outbreaks of the contagious disease. More than 4,000 cases have been recorded in Romania, with 18 measles related deaths there in the past six months. The UK, Italy, France, Germany, Belgium and Poland have also reported outbreaks, a situation that the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has attributed to "an accumulation of unvaccinated individuals". While anyone can get measles, it is more common in younger people. A respiratory disease, measles can cause a patient to cough and sneeze and develop a red-brown rash that lasts for five to seven days, but severe complications can occur and include miscarriage in pregnant women and potentially fatal brain swelling and pneumonia. Most of the population of Ireland is protected, having received the MMR vaccine in childhood. While the vaccination is generally given to 12-month-old infants, with a second dose at age four or five, doctors advise parents to seek out the vaccine for babies aged between six and 11 months if you plan on travelling to another European country in the coming months. “Today’s travel patterns put no person or country beyond the reach of the measles virus." said Dr Zsuzsanna Jakab, WHO Regional Director for Europe. "Outbreaks will continue in Europe, as elsewhere, until every country reaches the level of immunization needed to fully protect their populations.” World Health Organisation figures show that measles killed 134,000 worldwide in 2015. For further information on immunisation and travel, contact the HSE.