Vaccination Concerns MMR Controversy
NOTE: The mercury-based preservative thiomersal (which was formerly used in childhood vaccines) is known as 'thimerosal' in the USA. This page is under revision and will be updated with 2010-2011 links shortly. Related links |
The Lancet ScandalIn February 1998, the Lancet medical journal triggered a global scare with research claiming a possible link between the measles, mumps and rubella triple vaccine and autism. The researchers' leader, Dr Andrew Wakefield called for the vaccine to be "suspended". Following a Sunday Times investigation by Brian Deer, researchers at Britain's Royal Free hospital retracted claims that had caused a worldwide scare by linking the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine with autism. (briandeer.com website) MMR The factsNHS Immunisation Information Court rules out autism-vaccination link"The U.S. Court of Federal Claims has found no link between autism and vaccination. In a stunning trio of decisions, Special Masters have concluded that no credible evidence exists that MMR (measles/mumps/rubella) or thimerosal-containing vaccines can combine to cause autism. The decisions completely debunked these notions and implied that doctors who base their treatments on them are unscientific and unethical. More than 5,000 families who claim that vaccines caused their children to become autistic are seeking compensation under the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP). The decisions came in three cases selected to "test" how similar cases should be handled. One Special Master said "Sadly the petitioners in this litigation have been the victims of bad science conducted to support litigation rather than to advance medical and scientific understanding." Another said that the child's parents had been misled by doctors who were guilty of "gross medical misjudgment." Autism-Watch has posted key findings and links to the hearing transcripts and decisions." AutismWatch (13th February 2009) Brian Deer Finds Andrew Wakefield Faked Data"In 1998 Andrew Wakefield and others published a small study of only 12 subjects in the Lancet. This small study sparked a huge controversy — Wakefield used it to claim that the MMR (mumps measles and rubella) vaccine caused autism. As a result compliance with the MMR dropped from 92% in the UK down to 85%, and measles cases soared from only 58 cases in 1998 to 1,348 cases in 2008. Despite the fact that Wakefields paper has been thoroughly discredited, and subsequent studies showed convincingly that there is a lack of association between MMR or vaccines in general and autism, the controversy sparked by Wakefield continues…..Investigative journalist Brian Deer has been almost single-handedly responsible for digging up and exposing the sordid details of Wakefields dubious behavior…..Most of Wakefield's co-authors withdrew their names from the paper and the Lancet has issued a retraction. However, the damage to public perception had already been done." Article by Steven Novella MD, Neurologica Blog (9th February 2009) New Study: Measles Vaccine Doesn't Cause Autism"…according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): children are increasingly not being vaccinated against the highly contagious virus because of fears that ingredients in the injection may cause autism…..but new research by Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health did not find a connection. "We are confident that there is no link between [the measles vaccine] and autism," says lead study author W. Ian Lipkin, an epidemiologist. The researchers hope their findings published in the journal PLoS ONE will put the issue to rest and persuade parents to vaccinate their children—a move that could stop measles and other previously controlled serious illnesses such as mumps and whooping cough from making comebacks." Article by Nikhil Swaminathan Scientific American (3rd November 2008) Measles cases jump to record high"The number of measles cases in England and Wales jumped more than 30% last year to the highest level since records began in 1995. The Health Protection Agency (HPA) recorded 971 cases during the year — up from 740 in 2006. The agency issued a warning last summer urging parents to get their children immunised with the MMR jab. Experts have repeatedly stressed that public concerns about the safety of the jab have no foundation." BBC News report (22nd February 2008) The MMR-autism theory? There's nothing in itDr Michael Fitzpatrick talks to the molecular biologist, Stephen Bustin, whose devastating testimony in a US court demolished the last shred of evidence against vaccines. Spiked Online (4th July 2007) Doctor in MMR controversy drops Channel 4 libel action"The doctor who sparked the controversy over the safety of the MMR vaccine has dropped a two-year libel action against Channel 4, a fortnight after a high court judge ordered the disclosure of confidential documents to his opponents. Andrew Wakefield sued Channel 4 20-20 Productions and reporter Brian Deer over a November 2004 Dispatches programme MMR: What They Didn't Tell You." The Guardian (6th January 2007) Andrew Wakefield was paid by lawyers to undermine the MMR vaccineA critical look at Andrew Wakefield, the doctor who triggered the MMR scare that caused vaccination rates to fall across the UK resulting in the return of large numbers of measles and mumps cases. Includes a timeline of events. Orac at scienceblogs.com (January 2007) MMR doctor given legal aid thousands"Andrew Wakefield, the former surgeon whose campaign linking the MMR vaccine with autism caused a collapse in immunisation rates, was paid more than £400,000 by lawyers trying to prove that the vaccine was unsafe… Critics this weekend voiced amazement at the sums, which they said created a clear conflict of interest and were the "financial engine" behind a worldwide alarm over the triple measles, mumps and rubella shot." Brian Deer, Timesonline (31st December 2006) Implications of a 2005 Measles Outbreak in Indiana for Sustained Elimination of Measles in the United StatesConcludes that the outbreak was caused by the importation of measles into a population of children whose parents had refused to have them vaccinated because of safety concerns about the vaccine. High vaccination levels in the surrounding community and low rates of vaccine failure averted an epidemic. The New England Journal of Medicine (3rd August 2006) Pervasive Developmental Disorders in Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Prevalence and Links With ImmunizationsThe findings of this study ruled out an association between pervasive developmental disorder and either high levels of ethylmercury exposure comparable with those experienced in the United States in the 1990s or 1- or 2-dose measles-mumps-rubella vaccinations. Pediatrics (1st July 2006) MMR is safe — so why are many still scared of it?Article by Dr Michael Fitzpatrick, Spiked Health online (9th May 2006) High Court judge criticises Andrew Wakefield for trying to silence his critics"Andrew Wakefield, the doctor at the centre of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine controversy, was criticised by a high court judge last week for trying to silence critics by warning them that he was suing for libel while at the same time failing to progress the case. Mr Justice Eady said that he was quite satisfied that Dr Wakefield, who now works in Austin, Texas, "wished to extract whatever advantage he could from the existence of the proceedings while not wishing to progress them or to give the defendants an opportunity of meeting the claims."" News Extra, British Medical Journal (12th November 2005) The death agony of the anti-MMR campaign"Even after a Cochrane review found 'no credible evidence' of a link between MMR and autism, sections of the British media just won't let it die." Dr Michael Fitzpatrick, Spiked Health Online (11th November 2005) The Cochrane Library publishes the most thorough survey of MMR vaccination data which strongly supports its useCocharane Library (19th October 2005) [pdf] MMR Vaccine is Safe, International Team AffirmsMedpage Today (19th October 2005) No effect of MMR withdrawal on the incidence of autism: a total population studyConclusions: "The significance of this finding is that MMR vaccination is most unlikely to be a main cause of ASD (autism spectrum disorders), that it cannot explain the rise over time in the incidence of ASD, and that withdrawal of MMR in countries where it is still being used cannot be expected to lead to a reduction in the incidence of ASD." Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (June 2005) MMR Vaccination and Autism"The evidence is that MMR is not associated with autism in children. The quality, validity, and size of that evidence is overwhelming. There is no temporal relationship between MMR vaccination and autism, nor any different sort of autism associated with MMR, nor bowel problems. Autism rates began to rise before MMR, and continue to rise even if MMR is withdrawn. Autism rates tend to be lower in children vaccinated with MMR, though not significantly so." Bandolier Extra — Independent evidence-based thinking about health care (April 2005) [pdf] Autism rises despite MMR ban in JapanNew Scientist (5th March 2005) Increase in autism due to change in definition, not MMR vaccineBritish Medical Journal (15th January 2005) Does the MMR jab cause autism?The latest scientific evidence: Summary and transcript of the BBC Horizon programme. Also includes MMR questions and answers. BBC Science and Nature (2005) The Wakefield FactorMaterials from a documentary investigation by Brian Deer for the UK's Channel 4 Television (first broadcast on 18th November 2004) "exposing the bizarre true story of British gut surgeon Andrew Wakefield and his strange crusade against a children's vaccine". (briandeer.com website) MMR vaccination and pervasive developmental disorders: a case-control studyAbstract of the study cited in the link above. Its findings suggested that MMR vaccination was not associated with an increased risk of pervasive developmental disorders. Lancet (11th September 2004) Further evidence refuting link between MMR vaccine and autism — The LancetMedical News Today (11th September 2004) Thimerosal-Containing Vaccines and Autistic Spectrum Disorder: A Critical Review of Published Original DataPediatrics (3rd September 2004) Relationship Between MMR Vaccine and AutismConcludes that, based on current literature, it appears that there is no relationship between MMR vaccination and the development of autism. The Annals of Pharmacotherapy (1st June 2004) Vaccines and Autism: Important conclusions from the Institute of Medicine (IOM)Fact sheet containing the IOM's Immunization Safety Review Committee's most notable conclusions from a report by the IOM on vaccines and autism. The committee concluded that neither thimerosal-containing vaccines or MMR vaccine are associated with autism, that the hypotheses regarding a link between autism and MMR vaccine and thimerosal-containing vaccines lack supporting evidence and are only theoretical, and that future research to find the cause of autism should be directed toward other promising lines of inquiry that are supported by current knowledge and evidence and offer more promise for providing an answer. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (May 2004) [pdf] Some facts about the MMR vaccine — UK Department of HealthMedical News Today (31st May 2004) Authors reject interpretation linking autism and MMR vaccineBritish Medical Journal (13th March 2004) Questions and Answers: The MMR debateThe medical journal (The Lancet) at the centre of a row over controversial MMR research says it should not have published the original paper. This article examines the long-running debate over the safety of the three-in-one jab. BBC News (23rd February 2004) MMR row expert urges jab take-up"There is now unequivocal evidence that MMR is not a risk factor for autism — this statement is not spin or medical conspiracy, but reflects an unprecedented volume of medical study on a worldwide basis." BBC News UK (31st October 2003) Autism and thimerosal-containing vaccines: lack of consistent evidence for an associationConclusion: "The body of existing data, including the ecologic data presented herein, is not consistent with the hypothesis that increased exposure to Thimerosal-containing vaccines is responsible for the apparent increase in the rates of autism in young children being observed worldwide." American Journal of Preventive Medicine (August 2003) Association Between Thimerosal-Containing Vaccine and AutismConcludes that the results do not support a causal relationship between childhood vaccination with thimerosal-containing vaccines and development of autistic-spectrum disorders. The Journal of the American Medical Association (1st October 2003) MMR vaccination advice over the Internet"In conclusion, our study has confirmed previous investigations, suggesting that some CAM providers have a negative attitude towards immunisation, specifically MMR." Katja Schmidt and Edzard Ernst, Vaccine (2003) [pdf] A Population-Based Study of Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccination and AutismConclusion: "This study provides strong evidence against the hypothesis that MMR vaccination causes autism." The New England Journal of Medicine (7th November 2002) Risk of Guillan-Barre syndrome after measles-mumps-rubella vaccinationA retrospective study of 630,000 Finnish measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination recipients was undertaken. A total of 189 individuals developed Guillan-Barre syndrome (GBS) during the observational period. 20 of them had received the MMR vaccine. The calculations show that there is no conceivable causal association between MMR and GBS. Journal of Pediatrics (February 2001) MMR Vaccine and AutismSkeptic Wiki (The Encyclopaedia of Science and Critical Thinking) Thimerosal and AutismSkeptic Wiki (The Encyclopaedia of Science and Critical Thinking) |