AN OUTBREAK OF RUBELLA IN BRITISH TROOPS IN BOSNIA

An outbreak of rubella in April 1996 involved four male British soldie rs deployed to Bosnia-Herzegovina. All were helicopter ground crew who were members of the same unit and who periodically travelled to and w orked at forward air refuelling stations in Bosnia. There was a potent ial for spread of the infection to adjacent British units, to troops o f other nations in the peacekeeping force, and also to the local civil ian population. The British force included 620 female personnel, some of whom may have been non-immune to rubella. One pregnant British serv icewoman was repatriated to UK for her own protection. There was a pot ential health risk, including the possibility of congenital rubella sy ndrome, in the non-immune wives and partners of deployed male personne l, as a result of contact during the mid-tour home leave of the husban ds or partners. The outbreak was monitored through a medical surveilla nce system known as ARRC 97, and was contained by prompt and rigorous control measures. This outbreak shows the importance of effective surv eillance and of good microbiology laboratory support during military o perations. The role of immunization against rubella during future mili tary deployments is discussed.