There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

EXCLUSIVE
By Rachel Ellis, Medical Correspondent

A key study repeatedly used by the Government to support the MMR vaccine
was wrongly carried out and gave inaccurate results, experts claimed
yesterday.

The Danish research, which examined the medical records of more than
half-a-million children born over eight years, concluded there was no link
between children given MMR and the onset of autism.

But fresh analysis of the data by four experts to be published this week in
the Journal of
American Physicians and Surgeons suggest there is a link.

The first new study, by Dr Samy Suissa, an epidemiologist at McGill
University,
Montreal, who looked at the same data the Danish doctors used, concludes
that children who received the triple jab were 45 per cent more likely to
develop autism than those who were not given it.

A second piece of research - by Dr Fouad Yazbak, an American paediatrician
- shows a 400
per cent rise in autism after the introduction of MMR in Denmark, even
after taking into account greater awareness of the condition.

And a third study by Dr Andrew Wakefield, who first made the link between
MMR
and autism in 1998, and Dr Carol Stott of Cambridge University, shows
autism cases in Denmark have increased by 14.8 per cent each year since MMR
was introduced.

The findings will be a blow to the Government and supporters of
MMR who have relied heavily on the Danish study to dispel concerns about the
safety of the jab. They come at a time when the Government's immunisation
programme is once again in the spotlight following the announcement
earlier this month of a new
five-in-one vaccine for babies.

For parents, the new research will add still further to the confusion about
MMR.

Dr Wakefield, formerly of London's Royal Free Hospital, now works at a
school and research centre for children with developmental disorders in
Texas. He believes the Danish study was flawed because it made too many
assumptions.

"Many of the children in the original study were too young to be vaccinated
or too young to have received a diagnosis of autism. That was a mistake,"
he said.

"In order to include them in the study, an age adjustment was carried out
but that was inappropriate. It assumes that children we have not
ascertained data
about because they were too young were representative of the older
population.

"When the data was reanalysed without the age adjustment, there was a
significant excess risk of MMR in children with autism against the controls.
The original Danish study has been used as a rod to beat those who believe
MMR may be linked to autism.

"It was considered to be the definitive study which showed that there is no
link.
This new study underlines how statistics can be deceptive and misleading."

A spokeswoman for the Department of Health said the original Danish study
had been reviewed by the Institute of Medicine in Washington and no
problems had
been raised about the validity of the data.

She added: "There have been many other studies that have come to the same
conclusion - that there is no link between MMR and autism."

"john" wrote in message
...
Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research


Thanks for posting this. If you find the atricle referred to turns up on the
internet let us know.

Colin

"john" wrote in message
...
Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

EXCLUSIVE
By Rachel Ellis, Medical Correspondent

A key study repeatedly used by the Government to support the MMR vaccine
was wrongly carried out and gave inaccurate results, experts claimed
yesterday.

The Danish research, which examined the medical records of more than
half-a-million children born over eight years, concluded there was no link
between children given MMR and the onset of autism.

But fresh analysis of the data by four experts to be published this week
in
the Journal of
American Physicians and Surgeons suggest there is a link.

The first new study, by Dr Samy Suissa, an epidemiologist at McGill
University,
Montreal, who looked at the same data the Danish doctors used, concludes
that children who received the triple jab were 45 per cent more likely to
develop autism than those who were not given it.

That would be against MMR being a major cause of autism. In such
epidemiological studies a 45% difference would not be regarded as
necessarily significant. What were the 95% confidence limits?


A second piece of research - by Dr Fouad Yazbak, an American paediatrician
- shows a 400
per cent rise in autism after the introduction of MMR in Denmark, even
after taking into account greater awareness of the condition.

Wouldn't that mean all Denmark's children have autism?


And a third study by Dr Andrew Wakefield, who first made the link between
MMR
and autism in 1998, and Dr Carol Stott of Cambridge University, shows
autism cases in Denmark have increased by 14.8 per cent each year since
MMR
was introduced.

Wakefield is now known to be employed by the parents of children with
autism, and it would also mean by now that everyone in Denmark is autistic.

snip
A spokeswoman for the Department of Health said the original Danish study
had been reviewed by the Institute of Medicine in Washington and no
problems had
been raised about the validity of the data.

She added: "There have been many other studies that have come to the same
conclusion - that there is no link between MMR and autism."

Why not say that at the beginning?

Peter Moran

"john" wrote:

Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

EXCLUSIVE
By Rachel Ellis, Medical Correspondent

snip

From this week's edition of The Millenium Project

http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/

More persistent people (28/8/2004)

I would come as no surprise to anyone familiar with this site to find
that the anti-vaccination liars are repeating lies which have been
shown to be lies many times. The latest assault on children's
wellbeing is about to appear in a rag named The Journal of American
Physicians and Surgeons, published by the Association of American
Physicians and Surgeons, a group which despite its impressive name is
just a collection of anti-vaccination whackos.

Several "experts" have found flaws in a recent study in Denmark which
showed that there was no connection between MMR vaccinations and
autism. One of the authors, Dr Fouad Yazbak, usually seems to divide
his time between blaming autism on MMR vaccines and on the thimerosal
preservative which was used in some vaccines in the past, although I
have to admit that I cannot recall him ever conflating these two
"causes" by saying that the MMR vaccine contains thimerosal as many
other anti-vaccination liars will claim. (Dr Yazbak, along with Dr
Jane Orient, head of AAPS, appeared as an expert witness for baby
slaughterer Alan Yurko in Yurko's retrial hearing last week.) Another
author is the discredited Dr Andrew Wakefield.
http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/comment/ausscience5.htm

The new set of problems with the Danish study are attempts to confuse
the statistically illiterate by the use of bogus statistics, and lack
the imaginative property of previous discreditation attempts which
suggested such startling ideas as Danish children being so different
genetically to children in the rest of the world that the results of
the survey could not be generalised. I confidently predict that future
"research" by anti-vaccination liars will turn up many new and
unexpected ways that vaccines can damage children. They are only
limited by imagination and mendacity.

--
Peter Bowditch
The Millenium Project http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles
The Green Light http://www.ratbags.com/greenlight
Quintessence of the Loon http://www.ratbags.com/loon
To email me use my first name only at ratbags.com

just your usual word game drivel. See yourself (ratbags, liars) in others
as I tell my kids. Yurko out, so up yours


"Peter Bowditch" wrote in message
...
"john" wrote:

Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

EXCLUSIVE
By Rachel Ellis, Medical Correspondent

snip

From this week's edition of The Millenium Project

http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/

More persistent people (28/8/2004)

I would come as no surprise to anyone familiar with this site to find
that the anti-vaccination liars are repeating lies which have been
shown to be lies many times. The latest assault on children's
wellbeing is about to appear in a rag named The Journal of American
Physicians and Surgeons, published by the Association of American
Physicians and Surgeons, a group which despite its impressive name is
just a collection of anti-vaccination whackos.

Several "experts" have found flaws in a recent study in Denmark which
showed that there was no connection between MMR vaccinations and
autism. One of the authors, Dr Fouad Yazbak, usually seems to divide
his time between blaming autism on MMR vaccines and on the thimerosal
preservative which was used in some vaccines in the past, although I
have to admit that I cannot recall him ever conflating these two
"causes" by saying that the MMR vaccine contains thimerosal as many
other anti-vaccination liars will claim. (Dr Yazbak, along with Dr
Jane Orient, head of AAPS, appeared as an expert witness for baby
slaughterer Alan Yurko in Yurko's retrial hearing last week.) Another
author is the discredited Dr Andrew Wakefield.
http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/comment/ausscience5.htm

The new set of problems with the Danish study are attempts to confuse
the statistically illiterate by the use of bogus statistics, and lack
the imaginative property of previous discreditation attempts which
suggested such startling ideas as Danish children being so different
genetically to children in the rest of the world that the results of
the survey could not be generalised. I confidently predict that future
"research" by anti-vaccination liars will turn up many new and
unexpected ways that vaccines can damage children. They are only
limited by imagination and mendacity.

--
Peter Bowditch
The Millenium Project http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles
The Green Light http://www.ratbags.com/greenlight
Quintessence of the Loon http://www.ratbags.com/loon
To email me use my first name only at ratbags.com

"john" wrote in message
...
just your usual word game drivel. See yourself (ratbags, liars) in others
as I tell my kids. Yurko out, so up yours

Yurko left as a convict. Of manslaughter.

Jeff

"Peter Bowditch" wrote in message
...
"john" wrote:

Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

EXCLUSIVE
By Rachel Ellis, Medical Correspondent

snip

From this week's edition of The Millenium Project

http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/

More persistent people (28/8/2004)

I would come as no surprise to anyone familiar with this site to find
that the anti-vaccination liars are repeating lies which have been
shown to be lies many times. The latest assault on children's
wellbeing is about to appear in a rag named The Journal of American
Physicians and Surgeons, published by the Association of American
Physicians and Surgeons, a group which despite its impressive name is
just a collection of anti-vaccination whackos.

Several "experts" have found flaws in a recent study in Denmark which
showed that there was no connection between MMR vaccinations and
autism. One of the authors, Dr Fouad Yazbak, usually seems to divide
his time between blaming autism on MMR vaccines and on the thimerosal
preservative which was used in some vaccines in the past, although I
have to admit that I cannot recall him ever conflating these two
"causes" by saying that the MMR vaccine contains thimerosal as many
other anti-vaccination liars will claim. (Dr Yazbak, along with Dr
Jane Orient, head of AAPS, appeared as an expert witness for baby
slaughterer Alan Yurko in Yurko's retrial hearing last week.) Another
author is the discredited Dr Andrew Wakefield.
http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles/comment/ausscience5.htm

The new set of problems with the Danish study are attempts to confuse
the statistically illiterate by the use of bogus statistics, and lack
the imaginative property of previous discreditation attempts which
suggested such startling ideas as Danish children being so different
genetically to children in the rest of the world that the results of
the survey could not be generalised. I confidently predict that future
"research" by anti-vaccination liars will turn up many new and
unexpected ways that vaccines can damage children. They are only
limited by imagination and mendacity.

--
Peter Bowditch
The Millenium Project http://www.ratbags.com/rsoles
The Green Light http://www.ratbags.com/greenlight
Quintessence of the Loon http://www.ratbags.com/loon
To email me use my first name only at ratbags.com

"Peter Bowditch" wrote:
I confidently predict that future "research" by anti-vaccination
liars will turn up many new and unexpected ways that vaccines
can damage children.

There are, of course, idiots and liars on BOTH sides of the debate; just one
side has more money to back theirs up.

"Andrew Heenan" wrote in message
...
"Peter Bowditch" wrote:
I confidently predict that future "research" by anti-vaccination
liars will turn up many new and unexpected ways that vaccines
can damage children.

There are, of course, idiots and liars on BOTH sides of the debate; just
one
side has more money to back theirs up.

rewrite:

One side has more *facts* to back up theirs.

That side being the ones who abhor dead babies, the pro-vaccination people
who really care.

"john" wrote in message
...
just your usual word game drivel. See yourself (ratbags, liars) in others
as I tell my kids. Yurko out, so up yours


"Peter Bowditch" wrote in message

"Jeff" wrote in message
...

"john" wrote in message
...
just your usual word game drivel. See yourself (ratbags, liars) in
others
as I tell my kids. Yurko out, so up yours


"Peter Bowditch" wrote in message
...
"john" wrote:

Mail on Sunday
29 August 2004

There IS a link between the MMR jab and autism, claims new research

EXCLUSIVE
By Rachel Ellis, Medical Correspondent

snip

From this week's edition of The Millenium Project

More stuff that is bad for your health.