Gillray’s satirical cartoon dates from before immunisation methods were ‘safe’….. but are they ever really ‘safe’?
T
oday’s BBC news leads with the ‘clear statement that research ‘proves’ that MMR ‘does not trigger reaction’, i.e that there is no link between the triple vaccine and autism

But does the recent research prove this ?

I certainly do not know whether there is a link, but strongly suspect there may be.
The glaringly obvious flaw in the findings, put forward by the researchers from London’s St.Thomas’s and Guy’s Hospitals, is that the study does not establish that a normal response to this triple assault, on an undeveloped immune system by MMR vaccine (containing live viruses), may not lead to changes ending in autism, in infants who are predisposed/vulnerable.
The assumption that all babies will respond identically, and will produce the desired antibodies and go on to thrive, is clearly nonsensical.
Most do, at least in the short term (who knows what long-term effects may result?), however some react in subtle ways that leave only marginal effects, while some (hopefully a very few) have major reactions and die (although if you only want reassurance, a very upbeat website offers ‘proof’ that no harm ever appears to result from vaccination, under any circumstances – however be warned that there is no postal address given for the Tooth fairy, who I suspect lives on the same site).
Somewhere in the spectrum of variable responses it seems obvious that latent autistic tendencies might emerge. (Halsey et al 2001)
It’s also worth noting that a Cochrane Library Review (2005) concluded that “The design and reporting of safety outcomes in MMR vaccine studies, both pre- and post-marketing, are largely inadequate. The evidence of adverse events following immunisation with MMR cannot be separated from its role in preventing the target diseases.”

Today’s reassurances, as reported on the BBC, tell us:

MMR ‘does not trigger reaction’
Children with autism do not react differently to other youngsters to the MMR jab, a study shows.
London’s Guy’s and St Thomas’s Hospital found no difference in the immune response to the jab in a study of 240 children aged between 10 and 12.
Fears about a link between the two were first raised in 1998, prompting a drop in uptake of the vaccine, but that research has now been discredited.
Studies since have shown there is no link and that has been confirmed again.
The research, partly funded by the Department of Health and published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood, is the largest of its kind.
Previous studies have mainly looked for a possible link by examining autism trends in large groups of populations.
But the Guy’s and St Thomas’s team analysed blood samples of 240 children aged 10 to 12 to see if the MMR jab had caused an abnormal immune response that could have triggered autism.
This would have been indicated by increased antibody levels, but the researchers found no difference in the three groups they studied – children with autism, those without and those with special educational needs.
While all the children had had the first MMR jab, not all of them went on to have the second needed for maximum immunity.
The children who developed autism or special educational needs were the most likely not to have had the follow up jab – an indication of the public suspicion surrounding the safety of MMR.
Researcher Dr David Brown said: “The study found no evidence linking MMR to autistic spectrum disorder and the paper adds to the overwhelming body of evidence from around the world supporting the use of MMR.”
The Lancet medical journal published research by Dr Andrew Wakefield suggesting a link between the jab and the condition in 1998.
Claims
The journal subsequently distanced itself from the study of 12 children after it emerged Dr Wakefield had received funding to support legal action by a group of parents who claimed their children were damaged by the vaccine.
Dr Andrew Wakefield is currently appearing before the General Medical Council on charges relating to the claims.
But all this was after the publication had had an impact. The up-take of the triple-jab slumped in the immediate aftermath and is still under the 95% needed for herd immunity in some places, particularly London.
The number of confirmed measles cases has risen from 56 in 1998 in England and Wales to just under 1,000 in 2007, according to provisional data.
However, the impact of MMR on these figures is not clear.
Professor David Salisbury, director of immunisation at the Department of Health, said: “It’s natural for parents to worry about the health and well-being of their children and I hope that this study will reassure them that there is no evidence linking the MMR vaccine to autism.”
But Jackie Fletcher, from Jabs campaign group, said the conclusions were misleading. It is making a leap from having the actual data on the antibodies and saying MMR does not cause autism.

Thank’s Jackie, our views coincide.
Visit the Jabs website for a mass of information relating to vaccine-damaged children
Conclusion: It’s a huge leap to go from the antibody data presented in today’s report, to the ‘no-link’ between vaccine and autism statement, and hopefully people will not be fooled by this.

References:
Demicheli V, Jefferson T, Rivetti A, Price D 2005 Vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella in children”. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 19 (4). doi:10.1002/14651858.CD004407.pub2. PMID 16235361. Lay summary – Abstract and plain language summary (2005-10-19).
Halsey NA, Hyman S 2001 Measles-mumps-rubella vaccine and autistic spectrum disorder: report from the New Challenges in Childhood Immunizations Pediatrics 107 (5): e84