zendell wrote:
Pepperfire wrote:
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/118/1/e139
Quote:
CONCLUSIONS. The prevalence of pervasive developmental disorder in Montreal was high, increasing in recent birth cohorts as found in most countries. Factors accounting for the increase include a broadening of diagnostic concepts and criteria, increased awareness and, therefore, better identification of children with pervasive developmental disorders in communities and epidemiologic surveys, and improved access to services. The findings 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.
I suggest that anyone still considering the link between vaccines and autism read this study.
G-d I love my alma mater.
I read the study and it seems like a good one although I wonder whether children in America were exposed to higher levels of thimerosal. A frequently quoted Danish study used to claim thimerosal doesn't cause autism is meaningless because they only received a fraction of the thimerosal compared to US children. The dosage is important. Many vaccine ingredients would probably kill people if they were given in higher amounts.
I was surprised because the last few studies I've read that weren't able to find a link were of very poor quality. I've read several studies on this. Some were able to find a correlation between thimerosal and autism and others were unable to find one. The best study would be to look at autism rates in thimerosal versus thimerosal free groups for the same year of birth. The only studies I know of that looked at that found a link between thimerosal and autism (if you know of others, please let me know). The study you posted is good evidence of their not being a link but it doesn't conclusively prove it because autism is being diagnosed more often now and has broadened criteria which would offset any decrease in autism due to thimerosal being removed (especially if thimerosal only caused 1 or 2% of autism diagnoses).
I don't know what to believe because there is evidence on both sides. I wish everyone was open to examining all the evidence and not just the evidence that concludes that mercury isn't involved.
Here's an example of a study that found a link:
A secret CDC study (obtained a few years later by Congress) conducted by CDC employee Dr. Verstraeten revealed to Big Pharma reps at Simpsonwood found links between thimerosal and autism. Dr. Verstraeten at the CDC stated, "we have found statistically significant relationships between the exposure and outcomes for these different exposures and outcomes. First, for two months of age, an unspecified developmental delay, which has its own specific ICD9 code. Exposure at three months of age, Tics. Exposure at six months of age, an attention deficit disorder. Exposure at one, three and six months of age, language and speech delays which are two separate ICD9 codes. Exposures at one, three and six months of age, the entire category of neurodevelopmental delays, which includes all of these plus a number of other disorders." Regarding autism, the rate was double in the group receiving the most thimerosal compared to the group receiving the least but it may have been due to chance because they only had about 100 autism diagnoses to compare and they excluded almost half of them in their study.
http://www.autismhelpforyou.com/Simpson ... 20Rico.htmI will agree that thimerosal can't cause autism in someone who has never received it.
I would dearly love to discuss and perhaps even debate what you suggest here. The fact is that even the study that is used in your link, found no significant relation. None.
In Conclusion: we can state that this analysis does not rule out that receipt of th____ containing vaccine in children under three months of age may be related to an I_____ risk of neurologic developmental disorders. Specific conditions that may warra___ detailed study include autism, dyslalia, misery and unhappiness disorder and at____ deficit disorder. [b]There is no indication that thimerosal exposure is linked to inc____ risk of degenerative or other non-developmental neurologic disorders or renal d____ I can by pure grammatical and English language rules suggest that the words missing from this image would be the following (in order): thimerosal, increased warrant, attention, increased and damage (or disorder).
Limitations of the study that I believe may be significant?: "We were not able to differentiate between single dose thimerosal free Hib vaccines and multi-dose thimerosal containing Hib vaccines. These analyses were done assuming all vaccines came from multi-dose vials. An analysis assuming all Hib vaccines to come from single dose-vials did not substantially alter the results.
-- I wonder, had the two been able to be separated, would the outcome have differed? I doubt it.
I have to question the assumption of the "development" of the neurological disorders "AFTER" the vacccines, because, as we are already well aware, there is, as yet, no concrete method of pre-determining the existence of these disorders prior to the vaccine, and as such, can not correlate that their onset was a direct result of the vaccine. In other words, the development of these disorders is more than often age based and is not a result of the vaccines... This study, failed to consider that in their limitations in my opinion.
I will also note that there is no significant increase in the occurrence of these neurological disorders as a direct result of the vaccine. Were this the case, such a comprehensive study would indeed highlight that fact.
As for whether or not this document was significant. I suggest that 50% of the autism diagnoses excluded
is quite significant and has the severe potential to alter any conclusions made by this study.
Furthermore on page 22 of the study, it states quite clearly the following [b]"To easily differentiate between the effect of thimerosal and vacine, we would need to compare a group that received thimerosal free vaccine to thimerosal containing vaccine, which leads to point 8. The closest we have come to such a comparison was by comparing the group that received the DTP-Hib combination vaccine (containing 25 ug of mercury) to the group that received the DTP and Hib separately (each 25 ug of mercury). This comparison showed no significant relation to the outcome of neurologic developmental delay.
It seems to me that were they actually able to filter out those children who did actually receive thimerosal and/or mercury from those who had received neither, there would again be no significant relation to the outcome of neurologic developmental delays.
The fact is that regardless of the study, regardless of who pays for it, the results come up repeatedly that there is no significant relation, yet we continue to throw millions of dollars into such studies in the off-chance mayhaps that somebody somewhere might actually come up with some significant relation.
Being unable to rule out a possibility that there is a connection is not the same as finding a connection. Given that the study itself had limitations that would keep them from being able to clearly say without a doubt that the findings cannot rule it out although they can state quite equivocally that there is no relation... Seems to point, once again, to the fact that there is no relation between vaccines and autism.
Sadly, it is the continued vehemence by such as Jenny McCarthy and Autism Speaks that forces the "research" monies to go over and over again the ridiculously suggestion that vaccines could even possibly cause autism... Jenny McCarthy's scientific proof? Mother's know.
I would dearly love to see something... anything that actually says that there is even a remote reason to continue such studies even though EVERYTHING to date states there is no relation.
ad nauseum. Sigh.
31 Mar 2008, 1:41 am
