 Opinions remain sharply divided over the triple vaccine |
Parents are being urged to embrace the measles, mumps and rubella vaccination and prevent a major measles outbreak. The call came after a leading specialist who was involved in research which led to questions about the triple vaccine's links with autism and bowel disease said research had proved it to be safe.
Dr Simon Murch said there was unequivocal evidence supporting the safety of the MMR vaccine
His stance was welcomed by Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm who urged parents to take up the option of a combined MMR inoculation for their children.
He said: "Listening to scientific and clinical evidence on this subject, MMR has always been said to be best.
"Scotland's chief medical officer has said that there isn't a single country in the world that advocates the single vaccine for this so we are very much in tune with medical opinion worldwide."
However Dr Peter Copp, from GP Plus in Edinburgh, who runs the only practice in Scotland offering the single vaccine, said parents should have the option of single inoculations.
 |  We must not forget that without vaccination, children can develop measles, mumps and meningitis and that measles and meningitis can both kill  |
He told BBC Scotland that there was a large demand for separate vaccinations. "There is a strong cohort of parents in Scotland who will refuse to use combined MMR despite giving them all of the information that is available," he said.
"They just don't trust that information and would rather have single inoculations for their child than nothing at all."
On Thursday, health officials in Scotland revealed that notifications of suspected mumps reported by doctors over an 18-month period rose by 27%, rubella by 22% and measles by 18% in children under 15.
It is believed that concerns over the MMR vaccination have contributed to the rise.
The Meningitis Trust warned that parents should also be aware of the risk of measles and mumps-related meningitis.
'Further research needed'
Deputy chief executive Angela Dudley said: "We must remember that the MMR immunisation programme has effectively controlled these serious diseases.
"We must not forget that without vaccination, children can develop measles, mumps and meningitis and that measles and meningitis can both kill."
However Bill Welsh, chairman of Action Against Autism, is still calling for further research into the link between MMR and the condition.
He branded the current vaccination programme "insupportable and unacceptable."
"The MMR or nothing policy should have been kicked into touch a long time ago."
Dr Murch, of the centre for paediatric gastroenterology at the Royal Free Hospital in London, was one of the authors of a 1998 paper published in the Lancet which looked at the connection between inflammatory bowel disease and autistic disorders. The paper found a connection between bowel problems and autism but did not conclude that MMR was connected to this.
One of Dr Murch's co-authors, Dr Andrew Wakefield, went on to raise fears of a link between the combined jab and autism and recommended the use of single measles, mumps and rubella vaccines instead.
While Dr Murch's name was on the original Lancet paper, he has always advocated continuing with MMR jabs.
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